r LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



©Iptp. iojnjngfyi Ifu. 

Shelf AX* 7oo 

, HssH 33 

UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. 




Ero-priefas C.SS.E 



F. cle Sanctis scRoirvae . 



¥inf» ©BJiiii mourn mmmm 

Insignis Fropagafor Cong. SS . P\ed . 



LIFE 

OF THE VENERABLE SERVANT OF GOD 

CLEMENT MARIA HOFBAUER 

VICAR GENERAL OF THE CONGREGATION 
OF THE MOST HOLY REDEEMER 

BY 

FATHER R.P. MICHAEL HARWGER, 

CONSULTOR GENERAL OF THE CONGREGATION 
TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH 

BT 

Lady HERBERT. 







FR. PUSTET & CO. 

New York and Cincinnati. 
1883. 



S OXONI BS*m 






Copyriglit, 1883, by 
ERWIN STEINBACK 

OF THE FIRM 

FR. PUSTET & CO. 



PREFACE. 



IN the year 1864, when Cardinal Rauscher, Archbishop of 
Vienna, initiated the ordinary process on the life and 
virtues of that great servant of God , Clement Maria Hof- 
bauer, I, to call public attention to the character of this 
truly apostolic man, wrote a short notice of his history which 
was then published. But as this little biography touched 
only on the principal events of his life, I felt that it gave a 
very imperfect picture. Many feared that, 44 years having 
elapsed since F. Clement's death, and so many of his cotem- 
poraries and witnesses of his virtues having died, very little 
new matter would be gathered in the episcopal enquiry 
which had been set on foot. But, contrary to all expectation, 
such a number of excellent witnesses were found and such 
stupendous acts in his life discovered, that there was no 
difficulty whatever in finding abundant material for a com- 
plete biography. And although from the birth of Father 
Clement to the beginning of the cause for his beatification 
113 years had elapsed, still, in his native country, a woman 
was found who, having known him and his mother and 
sister, could give us many little anecdotes of his childhood. 
And as many other witnesses were found to tell of his great 



IV Preface of Author. 

works in Warsaw and in Germany, so a still greater number 
could testify to his last years in Vienna. 

The sworn depositions of these witnesses, which may be 
found in the "Summary", drawn up by the Congregation of 
Rites and especially on his "Virtues", were the principal 
sources from which I have drawn the materials of this life. 
I have also made use of various original M. S. and letters 
written by F. Clement to different friends ; as also of certain 
notes, written down at the time and carefully preserved by 
his disciples. I have also had the advantage, not only of 
talking with all the witnesses examined in Vienna, but also 
with many other private persons who were his friends and 
penitents : hence this book contains many things which na- 
turally were not included in the cause of his beatification. 

If, therefore, anything has been added to the original his- 
tory, the reader may feel convinced that it has only been 
stated on the best authority. I have omitted references, so 
as not to increase the number of notes. 

I have on most occasions quoted the actual words of the 
witnesses : and though this may have interfered a little with 
the purity of the style, I think it is more than compensated 
by the increased interest which the narrative presents. 
Father Clement was chosen by God to transplant and con- 
solidate, north of the Alps, the work begun by St. Alphonsus ; 
that is, the Congregation of S. S. Redeemer. He began his 
Apostolic Ministry two years before the death of our Holy 
Founder. And whilst St. Alphonsus by his writings, com- 
bated the false doctrines of the revolution, and died in 1787, 
before the breaking-out of the reign of anarchy and terror 
in France, so it fell upon F. Clement to struggle and suffer 



Preface of Author. V 

in the very midst of the storm which that fearful revolution 
had raised. He witnessed the fall of Royalty in France ; the 
fearful excesses of the Reign of Terror; the birth of the 
Empire and its fall ; the ruin of Poland ; and the overthrow 
of Religion in Germany and elsewhere. But in the midst of 
all these terrible events, Father Clement was firm as a rock ; 
and amidst the storms and darkness around him, he was as 
a luminous light-house pointing out the only path of safety. 
The Church, in the office for the Feast of St. Alphonsus, 
alluding to the light which he brought to the century in 
which he lived, applies to him this passage in Ecclesiasticus : 
" He shone in his days as the morning star in the midst of a cloud 
and as the moon at the full. And as a sun when it shineth, so did 
he shine in the Temple of God" (50 th chap. 6. and 7. verses) 
which words, it appears to me are equally applicable to F. 
Clement, for he too shone in the Church as the morning star 
and as the sun in the fulness of its light. He had to main- 
tain a brave front in the saddest times, although miscalled 
times of progress and liberty : and to hold up the lamp of 
faith and purity amidst the errors and darkness of the age. 
Like St. Alphonsus, F. Clement was indefatigable in 
preaching the faith, in combating error, and in defending 
the rights and liberties of the Church: for which cause he 
had to suffer the hardest trials. Nor, finally, am I afraid to 
point out his likeness to St, Alphonsus in character : in his 
devotion to the mysteries of the Incarnation and the Passion 
of our Lord Jesus Christ, in his love towards the august 
Sacrament of the altar : in his tender devotion towards Mary 
immaculate : and in his burning zeal for the glory of God 
and the salvation of souls. 



VI Preface of English Translator. 

And as Father Clement only died in 1820, his life is recent 
enough to touch almost our own days: and unhappily the 
events recorded in his time have their counterpart now: so 
that I hope that his example may be no small encourage- 
ment and guide to us, who have to go through the like trials 
and difficulties. 

The Author. 

Rome, Feast of the Purification 1880. 



PREFACE OF ENGLISH TRANSLATOR. 



IN giving to the ;English public a translation of Father 
Michael Haringer's beautiful life of the venerable Cle- 
ment Hof bauer, I feel bound to mention that I have made 
some omissions in the fourth and last book which contains 
a detailed account of his miracles and the cause of his bea- 
tification and also a chapter entirely devoted to his German 
disciples, which I thought would not be interesting to ordi- 
nary English readers. I have been reminded, however, that 
I was bound to give some account of one, Father Frederick 
de Held, as he was the founder of the English Province and 
was a person well known to English Catholics. 

He was born in Brunn near Sta. Maria of Enzersdorf on 
the 17 th of July 1799 and describes his first acquaintance 
with Father Clement in the following words: "I was 18, and 
studying philosophy at the University of Vienna, when, by 
the kindness of F. Springer, I had the good fortune of be- 
coming intimately acquainted with that great servant of 



Preface of English Translator. VII 

God, F. C. Hofbauer. At the very first sight of him, he in- 
spired me with such confidence that I chose him at once as 
my confessor and constantly went to visit him in the even- 
ing." Frederick was one of the first to enter the noviciate 
after F. Clement's death and on the 2 nd of August 1821, 
made his religious profession. On the 21 st of August 1823 
he was ordained Priest and began his apostolic labours in 
Stiria. From thence he was sent to Mantern where he was 
theological lecturer for some years. In 1832 he went to 
Naples to the General chapter called together for the elec- 
tion of the Father General : and the following year was sent 
to Belgium to preside at the foundation of the houses of 
Tournay and Liege. In 1839, he went to Rome for the Can- 
onization of St. Alphonsus : and in consequence of a Pon- 
tifical Decree creating new Provinces, he was appointed 
Belgian Provincial with residence at Liege. At that time 
the American Colleges were incorporated in the Belgian 
Province and so, to ascertain the state and the needs of the 
American Houses, F. de Held in 1845 started for those dis- 
tant regions. The Congregation under his guidance became 
so numerous in America that it was found necessary to form 
a fresh Province there. Father de Held having accomplished 
this great work, turned his steps towards England, which he 
had previously visited in 1838, being then a guest at Prior 
Park. The first idea of the Redemptorists 7 settling in Eng- 
land was when they were banished from Portugal and touched 
at an English Port in 1833. Then Dr. Baines invited them 
to make a foundation in this country: but it was delayed 
till Father de Held's arrival. His first idea was to settle in 
Scotland; but that having failed, he made the first founda- 
tion at Falmouth on the 17 th of June 1843, when a church 



"VIII Preface of English Translator. 

was opened under the title of "Our Lady of Victories." Other 
foundations followed whilst Father de Held was in America : 
one being at Hanley Castle, with a Succursale House at Red 
Marley. But when Father de Held returned to England in 
1848 negotiations had been already set on foot for purchas- 
ing a house in London as being in every way more central 
and suitable for the Congregation. The idea of this founda- 
tion was eagerly supported by several gentlemen, among 
whom were Mr. Herbert of Clytha, Mr. Philp, Mr. Scott Mur- 
ray, Monsignor George Talbot and others, who all came for- 
ward generously to assist in the expenses. Cardinal Wiseman 
warmly approved of the proponed foundation and finally 
Lord Teignmouth's house at Clapham was bought which 
had been the head-quarters of the Clapham Evangelicals 
and of the Bible Society ; and it was first occupied by the 
Redemptorists on the 31 st of July 1848, the first mass being 
said on St. Alphonsus' Feast. Previous to that, the Congre- 
gation had accepted various small missions or Chaplaincies : 
such as a station at Upton on Severn (from Hanley) in 1846: 
the Chaplaincy at Llanherne, accepted until July 1850 ; and 
the Chaplaincy at Rotherwas to Septbr. 1849. These Chap- 
laincies were served by the Redemptorist Fathers who had 
been temporarily expelled from Vienna by the revolution. 
There was also a station at Great Marlow, near Mr. Scott 
Murray's, which continued till the 25 t]l of March 1851. But 
at a meeting of the Superiors of the Congregation atBischen- 
berg in Alsace in 1850, it was decreeed that all these smaller 
missions in England should be abandoned. 

The next important foundation was at Bishop-Eton, near 
Liverpool, a house bought from Dr. Brown on the 19 th of 
March 1851, and which was first occupied on the 10 th of 



Preface of English Translator. IX 

June of that same year. A beautiful church was built there 
and dedicated to "The Annunciation". This has become the 
house of the noviciate. A foundation in Ireland was the next 
thing contemplated by Father de Held : but it does not ap- 
pear that he remained in this country long enough to make 
the desired foundation himself. His biographer states that 
in 1855 he assisted at the General Chapter in Rome: after 
which he passed several years in the Redemptorist house at 
Aix la Chapelle, from which he was expelled by the May 
laws of 1873. He then returned to England and having 
passed some time in his old home at Clapham, he returned 
to the Continent, and died at the advanced age of 82, on the 
21 st of April 1881 at Vals in Dutch Limburg, where the 
Fathers of the Rhenish Province had taken refuge after 
their expulsion from Prussia. 

The work he had inaugurated, however, was carried out 
the following year and on the 25 th of Novbr. 1853, the house 
at Limerick was opened and dedicated to St. Alphonsus. 
One thing should be mentioned in connection with this 
house at Limerick and that is , the confraternity of the Holy 
Family which is attached to it. It meets every week and as 
it numbers 4,300 men, one half have to meet on Monday 
evening and the other on Tuesday. Each night the large 
church is crowded to excess, some sections being placed in 
the sanctuary for want of room in the body of the church. 
This great work was begun during the Provincialate of the 
Bishop of Southwark in the year 1868 and it has gone on 
increasing ever since. At first, as I have before mentioned, 
the houses in this country belonged to the Belgian Province : 
but in 1854, the Anglo-Dutch Province was provisionally 
erected: and in the following year, 1855, in the month of 



X. Preface of English Translator. 

November, it was definitively separated from the Belgian 
Province. Father Swinkels (who afterwards was the Supe- 
rior of the Redemptorist House at Surinam in Dutch Guiana, 
South America, and at the same time Vicar Apostolic of that 
district) was the first Provincial of the Anglo-Dutch Pro- 
vince. But in 1859, the Revd. Robert Coffin, Rector of Clap- 
ham, was nominated by the Superior General, Vice-Pro- 
vincial of the English part of the Anglo-Dutch Province, 
which then consisted of the three Houses of Clapham, 
Limerick and Bishop-Eton. 

Father Coffin continued to be Vice-Provincial till 1865, 
when the English Province was separated from the Dutch 
and he was nominated Provincial of the newly erected in- 
dependent English Province. This was on the 24 th of May 
1865. He continued to hold that office till he was appointed 
Bishop of Southwark. 

The houses founded during his term of office were : 

Perth — dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour — 
opened on the 19 th of March 1869, the previous work of the 
Congregation in Scotland having been begun at Dundee 
from 1867 to 1868; 

Teignmouth — dedicated to St. Joseph, founded on the 3 rd 
of November 1875; 

Dundalk — also dedicated to St. Joseph — founded on the 
8 th of September 1876; 
and lastly, 

Singleton, New South Wales, opened on the Feast of the 
Patronage of St. Joseph 1882 by Father Edmund Vaughan. 

But in addition to the great extension of the work of the 
Congregation under Father Coffin's wise and prudent ad- 
ministration, he consolidated it by two important measures. 



Preface of English Translator. XI 

The first was the establishment of a noviciate which had not 
before existed in this country and which was fixed by the 
Father General at Bishop-Eton. It was opened on the 1 8 th 
of May I860, being the Feast of St, Venantius. It was the 
first day likewise of the Novena of the Holy Ghost, which 
is made every year in the Congregation in preparation for 
the Feast of Pentecost. Mass was said in the noviciate ora- 
tory by the veryRevd. the Father Provincial (Bishop Coffin) . 
There were at first but four novices : but after the mass, the 
Veni Creator was sung and the Redemptorist noviciate was 
declared to be opened in England. 

The second important work which Father Coffin estab- 
lished was a separate house of studies for the students of 
the Congregation. This was begun at Bishop-Eton in 1871: 
but in 1875 the students were transferred to Teignmouth 
to a house rented from the Bishop of Plymouth, where they 
remained until the present new house was finished in 1880. 
Teignmouth is now the House of studies, while Bishop-Eton 
remains the noviciate of the Congregation. 

But not content with embracing great Britain in his cha- 
rity, Father Coffin could not turn a deaf ear to the cry for 
help which came from the Australian Colonies, and in the 
spring of last year, yielded to the intreaties of the Bishop of 
Maitland and sent four Fathers and two lay-brothers under 
the care of Father Edmund Vaughan, as Superior, to found 
a fresh house at Singleton in that distant country. 

The English Province at the present moment including 
N. S. Wales numbers 122 subjects, including professed Fa- 
thers, professed students, choir novices, professed lay-bro- 
thers and novice lay-brothers. 

It seems perfectly incredible that such a small number 



XII Preface of English Translator. 

of men should have done so gigantic a work as may be seen 
by the following Tabular Statement. 

In Great Britain and Ireland from 1848 to 1883. 

Missions given . . . . 1,373 

Renewals of Missions 236 

Clergy Retreats 354 

Retreats to Colleges and Communities 1,151 

Retreats to the Confraternities of the Holy Family 372 

Converts made at home and on the Missions . . 16,838 

This does not include the Missions and Retreats already 
given in Australia, where the Fathers are overwhelmed 
with work, and Missions and Retreats are asked for in every 
Parish of each Diocese ! 

^Messis multa — operant vero pauci." 

May we not hope that by a study of the Life of the great 
servant of God of whose biography I have now given an 
English version, many fresh vocations may be called forth, 
and that his prayers and sacrifices may thus bear fruit even 
to the uttermost ends of the earth. 

Mary Elisabeth Herbert. 
Herbert House 
Belgrave Square. 
Febr. 9. 1883. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

Preface of Author Ill 

Preface of English Translator VI 

FIRST BOOK. 

FROM THE BIRTH OF CLEMENT IN 1751 TO HIS ENTRANCE 
INTO THE CONGREGATION OF THE MOST HOLY REDEEMER 

IN 1784. 

Chapter I. 

The Birth and Infancy of F. Clement. From 1751 to 1767 ... 1 

Chapter H. 

Clement is taught a Baker's Trade which he exercises in the Mo- 
nastery of Bruck. From 1767 to 1776 4 

Chapter III. 

He practices the Trade of Baker in Vienna. He goes on a Pilgrimage 
to Rome. The Condition of the Austrian Empire and the Journey 
of Pius VI. to Vienna. From 1778 to 1782 8 

Chapter IV. 

Clement returns to Rome and goes to the Hermitage at Tivoli. From 
1782 to 1783 11 

Chapter V. 

Clement returns to Vienna to resume his Studies. He contracts an 
intimate Friendship with Thaddeus Hiibl. From 1783 to 1784 . 14 

Chapter VI. 

He goes hack to Rome : joins the Redemptorist Congregation and is 
ordained Priest. From 1784 to 1785 17 



XIV Contents. 



BOOK THE SECOND. 

FROM FATHER CLEMENT'S DEPARTURE FOR WARSAW 

IN 1786 TO HIS RETURN TO VIENNA IN 1808. 

Chapter I. page. 

Father Clement's Journey to Warsaw. From 1786 to 1787 .... 23 

Chapter II. 

Beginning of the Foundation in Warsaw. The State of Poland. The 
first Disciples of Father Clement 26 

Chapter III. 

His apostolic Works in Warsaw. He founds an Orphanage. His pro- 
fuse Charity towards the Poor 35 

Chapter IV. 

Other Apostolic Labours in Poland. F. Clement's Account of the la- 
mentable State of Religion in that Country 41 

Chapter V. 

His indefatigable Zeal for the Diffusion of good Books, and especially 
of the works of St. Alphonsus 47 

Chapter VI. 

The Redemptorists in Stralsund and in other Stations of Poland. 
From 1795 to 1807 51 

Chapter VII. 
The incessant Anxiety of Father Clement to propagate the Congrega- 
tion in Germany. His Pilgrimage to Prague. 1795 55 

Chapter VIII. 
His Anxiety for higher Education 61 

Chapter IX. 

The State of the Church in Germany at the End of the 18 th Century 
and the Beginning of the 19 th. Who were Dalberg and Wessenberg 64 

Chapter X. 

F. Clement founds a House in the Diocese of Constance. His Journey 
to Rome and Return to Warsaw. From 1802 to 1804 74 

Chapter XI. 

New Labours of Father Clement in Germany. A fresh Journey to 
Mount Thabor. He founds a House at Triberg, which, however, 
was speedily suppressed. From 1804 to 1805 80 



Contents. XV 



Chapter XII. page. 

Clement takes Refuge with his Brethren at Babenhausen. The Virtues 
he there exercised. From 1805 to 1806 85 

Chapter XIII. 

Persecutions endured by the Redemptorists at Babenhausen. Father 
Clement returns to Warsaw. 1806 93 

Chapter XIV. 

The Redemptorists are driven from Babenhausen and take Refuge in 
Switzerland. A short Notice of Father Clement's first Disciples. 
From 1806 to 1807 ' 99 

Chapter XV. 
The Redemptorists in Coire. Their Troubles and Persecutions. Driven 
from thence, they take Refuge in the Valais. 1807 104 

Chapter XVI. 

Father Clement an Example of all religious and domestic Virtues to 
his Brethren 116 

Chapter XVII. 

Great Anxiety as regarded the House at Warsaw. The Death of Father 
Thaddeus Hiibl. From 1806 to 1807 124 

Chapter XVIIL 

Who Father Thaddeus was: and how he was esteemed and revered 
by all. His solemn Funeral 128 

Chapter XIX. 

The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw and the Fathers barbar- 
ously driven away. 1808 134 

Chapter XX. 

Father Clement with his Brethren detained at the Fortress of Custrin. 
His Journey to Vienna 147 

THIRD BOOK. 

FROM THE ARRIVAL OF FATHER CLEMENT IN VIENNA 
IN 1808 TILL HIS PRECIOUS DEATH IN 1820. 

Chapter I. 

His Arrival in Vienna. His Residence near the Italian Church, in 
which he exercises his Zeal and greatly promotes the Worship of 
the Blessed Sacrament. From 1808 to 1813 154 



XVI Contents. 

CHAPTER II. PAGE. 

F. Clement is made Confessor and Director of the Ursulines. De- 
plorable State of the Church in Vienna. Who was Archbishop 
Hohenwarth. The daily Occupations of Father Clement 160 

Chapter III. 

Father Clement by his Faith and Zeal, inflamed the Viennese with 
a like Ardour 168 

Chapter IV. 

The Devotion of F. Clement for the Mysteries of our Redemption. 
His Zeal for the worthy Celebration of the Divine Offices . . . .178 

Chapter V. 

F. Clement's Devotion to our Lady, to the Saints and to the Souls 
in Purgatory 186 

Chapter VI. 
Father Clement as a Preacher. His Way of announcing the Word of 
God . .- 192 

Chapter VII. 
The principal Subjects of Father Clement's Preaching. His Maxims 
and Spirit ' 198 

Chapter VIII. 

Father Clement is powerfully helped in his Apostolate by Frederick 
Zacchary Werner. Who this celebrated Orator was 206 

Chapter IX. 

Father Clement in the Tribunal of Penance. His Anxiety for the 
Salvation of Souls 212 

Chapter X. 
With what Charity and Prudence he treated his Penitents .... 218 

Chapter XI. 
Father Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns 221 

Chapter XII. 
Father Clement's Love and Zeal for the Sick 231 

Chapter XIII. 
His paternal Sollicitude for the Poor 237 



Contents. XVII 

Chapter XIV. page. 
His Efforts for the Christian Education of Youth 241 

Chapter XV. 

Father Clement converts many Jews and Protestants 245 

Chapter XVI. 
The Meetings and Evening Conferences in Father Clement's House 255 

Chapter XVII. 

His Anxiety for the Welfare of the Universal Church, and especially 
at the Time of the Congress in Vienna 259 

Chapter XVIII. 

His Zeal for the Purity of the Faith. His Judgment on Sailer and 
Bolzano 265 

Chapter XIX. 
Father Clement deserves well of Catholic Literature 267 

Chapter XX. 

The Vicissitudes of the Congregation in Switzerland. Father Clement 
sends Missionaries into Wallachia. Who was Father Libotzky . . 270 

Chapter XXI. 

The Anxiety felt by Father Clement for the Reestablisbment of the 
Congregation in Poland. A further Notice of the Life and Death 
of Father Podgorski 277 

Chapter XXII. 

A new Persecution is started at Vienna against Father Clement. 
Francis I. shows himself to be favourable to his Cause 281 

Chapter XXIII. 

The extraordinary Graces and Miracles granted to Father Clement in 
his Life-time 289 

Chapter XXIV. 

Father Clement begins to be seriously ill, but still continues his 
Apostolic Labours. 1820 298 

Chapter XXV. 
The precious Death of Father Clement. 1820 301 



XVIII Contents. 

Chapter XXVI. page. 
The solemn Funeral of Father Clement 307 

Chapter XXVII. 
Father Clement's personal Appearance and Character 313 

FOURTH BOOK. 

Chapter I. 
On the Foundation of the Congregation in Vienna. 1820 .... 317 

Chapter II. 

The Veneration shown to F. Clement's Tomb in Sta. Maria di Enzers- 
dorf. Solemn Translation of his Relics to Vienna in 1862 . . . 322 

Chapter III. 
His Apparition after Death. His Miracles 326 

Chapter IV. 

The Fulfilment of Father Clement's Prophecy on the Spread of the 
Redemptorist Congregation 329 

Chapter V. 
Conclusion 337 

Appendix 341 



THE FIRST BOOK. 

FEOM THE BIETH OF CLEMENT IN 1751, TO HIS 

ENTEANCE INTO THE CONGEEGATION OP THE 

HOLY EEDEEMEB IN 1784. 



CHAPTER I. 

The Birth and Infancy of Clement. 

[From 1751 to 1767.] 

CLEMENT Maria Hofbauer, whom God designed to combat 
the pretended intellectual progress which was just then 
becoming the fashion of the age and to revive the dying 
piety of the faithful, was born on the 2 6 th of December 1751, 
at Passwitz, a considerable town in Moravia in the neigh- 
bourhood of Znaim on the borders of the Austrian Empire. 
According to the pious custom of that believing people, he 
was carried to the Parish Church (which was dedicated to 
the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin) on the very day of 
his birth and received in holy Baptism the name of John, 
which was afterwards changed to that of Clement. A Pre- 
monstratensian Father of the Monastery of Bruck , called 
Adolfo Dujardin, performed the Baptismal Ceremony; and 
his Godfather was Michael Jahn, the father of the man who 
became afterwards so famous for his writings. — Clement's 
own father, who was born at Budwitz, in Moravia, was called 

i 



2 From 1751 to 1767. 

Peter Paul Dworzak ; but, according to custom, he changed 
it to Hofbauer when he was transferred to a German 
county. He was a thoroughly pious, upright and excellent 
man — a butcher by trade — but preferring to that the culti- 
vation of his fields and the care of cattle. The maiden name 
of Clement's mother was Maria Steer. Heaven blessed this 
pious couple with 1 2 children, only five of whom, however, 
lived to grow up, i. e. 4 boys and 1 girl, of whom Clement 
was the youngest. To his mother belonged the task of 
sowing the seeds of piety and virtue in the soul of this privi- 
leged child: and when, in 1758, his father died, in the 
prime of life (being only 47 years of agei all the care of the 
family devolved upon her. Clement was then only a little 
more than six years old. — 

Even when she carried him in her womb, this holy mother 
had dedicated him in spirit to the service of God. After his 
fathers death she led him to the foot of *he Crucifix and 
said to him : "From henceforth this must be thy father. Be 
careful to walk in the path most pleasing to Him" — which 
words made a profound impression on the child, who, young 
as he was, never forgot them. In the very last years of his 
life, he spoke of the blessing which had been vouchsafed to 
him in the piety of his parents and especially dwelt on the 
tender veneration he entertained for his mother, who had 
kindled in his heart that flame of divine love which was 
afterwards to become in him a consuming fire. — 

From his earliest years she accustomed him to prayer and 
to other little exercises of piety and virtue, and the child 
corresponded so entirely to the mothers wishes and became 
such an example of filial docility and obedience, that already 
he was marked out as an instrument chosen by God for 
the fulfilment of his designs. 

His fervour before the Blessed Sacrament and his zeal in 
honouring our Lady and the Saints were remarkable from 
his earliest years. He used to delight in fasting on Saturdays 



F/om 1751 to 1767. 3 

and on all the Eves of the Blessed Virgin's Feasts in order 
to testify his love and devotion to her. His mother while 
secretly admiring her boy's piety, nevertheless insisted that 
in all things he should act according to her will, to accustom 
him to conquer himself and his own inclinations, in which 
consists the highest virtue. Therefore, without express per- 
mission from his mother, the child did not dare fast. And 
as she knew how willingly and joyfully he was prepared 
to make such sacrifices, she made use of this disposition to 
incite him to still greater virtue, so that she only granted 
his request when he had behaved unusually well. Nor did 
she ever pra'se him for such little acts of self-denial or speak 
of them to others in his presence, as many less wise mothers 
do: but treated them with discreet and grave reserve. The 
food or other little delicacies which Clement denied him- 
self on those days, he obtained permission to distribute 
among a certain number of poor children , whom it was his 
delight to supply in this way: and the money which his 
mother gave him from time to time to spend as he liked, 
was instantly distributed among the poor, or saved up to 
have certain masses said for his intention. 

He was always ready to pray: and the Rosary which in 
most children's hands is more a plaything than anything 
else, was said by him with an affection and devotion far be- 
yond his age. Often he would induce his brothers and sisters 
to join him: and whilst the rest were playing at some game, 
Clement would steal away to pray before the Blessed Sacra- 
ment. A little story told of him when he was only 8 years 
old, will give a fair idea of the state of his mind. He went 
one day with his mother to call on some relations and one 
of them being asked "what they did in the day?" replied: 
"O! kill time!" The boy had heard the question and asked 
for an explanation of the answer, which, when his mother 
had given it to him, he exclaimed with astonishment : "But 
if they have nothing to do, why do they not pray ?" 



4 From 1767 to 1776. 

What holy wisdom in the soul of the child do not these 
words reveal! — 

No one can be surprised that he was loved and appreciated 
by every body. In the day-school he attended he was as 
great a favourite with the masters as with the boys : and the 
former were constantly quoting him as an example to the 
rest. In the same way, the priests of the place, whose masses 
he constantly served and one of whom taught him the ru- 
diments of Latin, were daily more and more edified at his 
devotion, obedience and innocence. In fact, he gave abun- 
dant promise in those early years of the eminent virtues 
which afterwards made him the apostle of his country. 



CHAPTER II. 

Clement is taught a baker's trade, which he exercises in 
the monastery of bruck. 

[From 1767 to 177a.] 

THIS beloved Benjamin of his mother's house remained 
at home till he was 16, when a change came over the for- 
tunes of the family. His sister Barbara married, his mo- 
ther gave her up her own house: and his three brothers who 
had followed their father's trade left Passwitz. Charles after 
having served in the army and made a campaign against 
the Turks, established himself in S. Andrea, near Temesvar. 
Herman settled at Znaim: and Laurence in the neighbour- 
hood of Nikolsburg. 

But Clement, whose only dream was to devote himself to 
the service of God in the ecclesiastical state, which was also 
his mother's wish, refused all proposals to join them. Only, 
as he had not the means to follow his studies he resolved 
to learn a trade so as to earn money for this purpose and 



From 1767 to 1776. 5 

chose that of a baker. — In the month of March 1767 he 
accordingly left his loving mother and went to the old Town 
of Znaim to learn his business. And here it happened as it 
had at home — that he won the hearts of every body and 
especially of his master, Francesco Dobsch and his wife. 
Their little boy, a child of 5 years old, took the most vio- 
lent fancy for him and insisted on accompanying him when 
he went out to carry the bread. But as the little fellow could, 
naturally, only take short steps and thus hindered Clement 
in his work, he implored his mistress to keep him at home. 
The good mother, however, who was not slow in finding out 
the great advantage it was to her boy to be as much as pos- 
sible with Clement, implored him to have patience and to 
continue to take the child with him. Clement, not wishing 
to vex his mistress by a refusal, but, on the other hand, 
anxious not to displease their customers by want of punctu- 
ality in delivering the bread, bethought himself of the ex- 
pedient of carrying the little fellow on one arm, while, with 
the other he bore the basket of bread. When the people 
saw him pass in that way, with the child on his shoulder, 
they cried out: "O! here is St. Christopher!" Clement had 
never read that story of the Saint and so, fancying that they 
were talking of some one else, turned round to look. But 
amused at his simplicity, the people then cried out : "But 
you are yourself St. Christopher!" On returning home, he 
asked his master what they meant. On hearing the Legend 
and how St. Christopher carried the Infant Jesus on his 
shoulder, he exclaimed : "O ! would that I were indeed St. 
Christopher, that I might bear in my hands my Lord and 
my God!" — This, in fact, was his aspiration day and night: 
and often when his work was done would he watch till 
dawn, praying that God would open a way for him to serve 
at His Altar. But our Lord did not allow such a desire to 
remain long unfulfilled and brought about the accomplish- 
ment of his wishes in a most unexpected manner. 



6 From 1767 to 1776. 

Clement had been working for 3 years with this master, 
when he was sent for to act as baker in the monastery of 
Bruck, where he fomid the opportunity of exercising not 
only his trade but charity to his neighbour and that in an 
heroic degree. The year 17 71, was memorable for a fearful 
famine which reduced the people of Bohemia to the great- 
est misery, so that from all parts of the country the people 
came to beg for bread at the doors of the monastery. The 
monks did all they could : but Clement, not thinking of his 
own labour or fatigue, quadrupled the usual quantity of 
bread made and besides, fasted himself continually, so as to 
increase the portions given at the gate. The famine was fol- 
lowed by fever, as is so often the case, which decimated the 
unhappy population and still further touched Clement's 
loving heart. So that after having laboured all day, he would 
watch half the night to appease the wrath of God and im- 
plore His mercy before the altar. 

The Abbot Gregory Lambeck, a gentle and benevolent 
old man, having watched Clement's conduct and being greatly 
struck with his eminent virtues, became warmly attached 
to him and removed him from his post as baker to serve as 
his personal attendant. And soon finding out his intense 
desire to become a Priest, gave him leave to spend all his 
free hours in studying Latin and other things in the Gram- 
mar School attached to the monastery. Clement joyfully 
availed himself of this unexpected permission, and from 1772 
to 1775 passed through all the four classes of this college, 
although his other duties prevented his studying as he would 
have wished. To show the spirit which animated him we 
will mention one of his speeches about this time to a cousin 
and fellow-countryman of his, John Jahn, who was a Reli- 
gious in the monastery. Perceiving in him an inordinate 
love of study, especially of abstruse sciences, he one day 
said to him gently: "Learning is a great thing — but sanctity 
is a greater. You must pray more, otherwise you will some 



From 1767 to 1776. 7 

day get into trouble.'' — A warning unheeded at the time, 
but the truth of which was made but too apparent later, 
when Jahn by his clever but rationalistic writings, found 
himself in disgrace with the Holy See which forbid the cir- 
culation of his works. 

About the year 1775, Clement left the monastery, either 
because of the death of the good Abbot who had been as a 
father to him, or because he did not feel himself called to 
join the Premonstratensian Order. He then found himself 
in one of those critical positions in which a man can only 
throw himself unreservedly into the Arms of Providence, 
His own great anxiety was to continue his studies. But 
there were two difficulties — the one, the want of means — 
the other, that at 2 5 years of age, he could hardly go into a 
public school. He had also a great dread of the irreligious 
spirit which at that moment invaded most of the colleges. 
On the other hand, the great love he had for prayer and the 
hidden life suggested to him that it might be the will of God 
that he should serve Him as a hermit. For this purpose, 
he retired to Muhlfrauen, a little country place not far from 
his old home, to serve the beautiful church which had been 
built there by his old friend and patron, Abbot Lambeck. 
This church is dedicated to our Lord bound to the column ; 
and being the site of many miracles was very much fre- 
quented by pilgrims and devout persons. Clement with the 
help of his brother Herman, built himself a little cell in the 
neighbouring wood, where he lived in perpetual union with 
God ; thus gaining in this retreat treasures of grace which 
he was afterwards to dispense to others. The pilgrims who 
visited him in his hermitage provided him with what was 
absolutely necessary for his sustenance : and he repaid them 
by holy instructions and opportune admonitions : and some- 
times accompanied them to the church bearing a heavy 
cross, while he gave lighter ones to the pilgrims, so that 
they might bear them in the spirit of penitence. — 



8 From 1778 to 1782. 

One year alone was allowed him of this holy quietude. 
Then the irreligious government of Joseph the 2 nd abolished 
all hermitages under the pretence that they were not suited 
to the days of advanced civilisation ; and thus Clement was 
turned out of his humble cell, which is shown to this day. 
He felt the blow heavily : but Divine Providence thus guided 
his steps. The hermit was to be changed into the apostle 
who should combat the very evils which had driven him 
from his solitude. And it was on this occasion that he went 
to Budwitz, his father's native city, where he learned the 
Sclav language, which from its affinity to the Polish, became 
most useful to him when employed in his future missions. — 



CHAPTER III. 

He practises the trade of Baker in Vienna. He goes on a 

pilgrimage to rome, the condition of the austrian empire 

and the journey of plus vi, to vienna. 

[From 1778 to 1782.] 

CLEMENT did not stay long at Budwitz, for in 1778 we 
find him in Vienna, where he was plying his old trade of 
baker in a house called "The iron Pear", behind the Ursu- 
line Monastery. There he matured a plan which he had long 
entertained of making a pilgrimage to Rome to pray on the 
Tombs of the Princes of the Apostles. There was a young 
man working in the same bakehouse, named Peter Kunz- 
mann, a native of the Diocese of Erbipoli, with whom Cle- 
ment contracted a close friendship and they encouraged one 
another in the practice of every virtue. Clement having con- 
fided the idea of his Roman Pilgrimage to his friend, Peter 
joyfully acceded to it, following thereby the impulse of his 
heart. But their joint savings not sufficing for so long a 
journey, they made up their minds to sell all their best 



From 1778 to 1782. 9 

clothes, which being ornamented, according to the custom 
of their country, with old silver buttons, had a certain market 
value. Then they started, travelling all the way on foot, 
praying out loud or singing hymns and spiritual songs and 
that even in populous towns, not minding the ridicule of 
the passers-by. Having at last arrived in the holy city, they 
spent their whole time in visiting the sanctuaries and fre- 
quenting the Sacraments: after which they returned to 
Vienna, greatly strengthened in faith and with their hearts 
filled with holy emotions and generous resolves. 

In the year 1782, Vienna was honoured by a visit from 
the Holy Father Pius VI himself, who, as a Father anxious 
for the welfare of his children, had determined to commu- 
nicate directly with the Emperor Joseph ; and therefore, leav- 
ing Rome on the 27 th of Febr., arrived in Vienna on the 22 nd 
of March. 

This Emperor, Joseph the 2 nd , who had succeeded his mo- 
ther Maria Teresa, had determined to inaugurate certain 
changes in the Government of the Church. These notions, 
which afterwards, unfortunately, obtained powerful suppor- 
ters in the persons of the Jansenists, Gallicans, and other 
similar schismatics, found a strong exponent in Joseph, who 
determined to put them in practice in his own dominions. 
The theory which gave the right to the civil power to inter- 
fere in the spiritual as well as the temporal interests of its 
subjects, suited his despotic temperament. Consequently 
no sooner had he ascended the throne, than he set himself 
to work to reform the Church according to his own ideas. 
The faithful were no longer to hold direct communications 
with Rome. The imperial * ( placet" was necessary to all pon- 
tifical Bulls, or Rescripts before they could be promulgated ; 
the education of the Clergy was to be taken away from the 
supervision of the Bishops : the Diocesan Seminaries were 
to be closed, and the ecclesiastical students were to be placed 
in seminaries under the direction of the Government. The 



10 From 1778 to 1782. 

laws regarding matrimony were to be settled by the State, 
and the Bishops were to be compelled to grant dispensations, 
which, before, had always been referred to the Holy See ; to 
which not even reserved cases of conscience could be brought 
save through the medium of the Imperial Ambassador. All 
institutions of Christian education, convents and monas- 
teries, especially those of the contemplative orders, were de- 
clared useless and either suppressed altogether or reduced 
to half their numbers. And to such lengths did- this Vo- 
sephism" go, that it was proposed to appoint a Government 
Committee to regulate the forms of Divine worship, the vest- 
ments of the Priests and the ringing of the bells! ! — Pius VI 
had not ceased to remonstrate, but hitherto in vain. He 
hoped, therefore, that his august presence in Vienna might 
induce the Emperor to retrace his steps before it was too 
late. The people received him with intense joy and enthu- 
siasm : but not so the perverse King. Before he was halfway 
on his journey, he had sent to tell the Pope that nothing 
should induce him to alter his system. And the result was, 
that this visit only heaped further humiliations on the head 
of the afflicted Pontiff: and the infamous Libel called" What 
it the Pope ?" by the well-known Eybel, was circulated through 
the Town in order to discredit his mission in every way. 
After a month of fruitless negotiations, the Pope returned 
to Rome by Bavaria and the Tyrol, where the Faith and 
Love of the people consoled as far as possible his paternal 
heart. — 

It did not please our Lord that the Emperor's proposals 
should thus be stifled in the birth : but He permitted that 
they should become the punishment of a people too forget- 
ful of His love. Yet, His infinite goodness was even then 
preparing an instrument to remedy the evil. As the Holy 
Father passed through the streets of Vienna blessing the 
multitude, his benediction lit upon our saintlike though 
humble Clement whom God had destined for this special 



From J7S2 to 1783. It 

work. What the Pope, surrounded with all the splendour of 
the supreme Pontificate could not effect, this humble work- 
man was to carry out, at least in a great measure. The joy 
which he had experienced in seeing the Pope within the 
walls of Vienna was saddened by the failure of his mission : 
and when he sought for consolation before the Blessed Sa- 
crament, even then he was pained at seeing the altars 
despoiled by the orders of the State, and the Church enslaved 
in a manner unprecedented in that Catholic country. — 



CHAPTER IV. 

Clement returns to Rome and goes to the hermitage 
at Tivoli. 

[From 1782 to 1783.] 

THE sad events of the times roused, once more, in Cle- 
ment's heart, the longing for the quiet of his hermit's life ; 
and speaking of it to his friend Kunzmann, he proposed to 
him a second Roman pilgrimage. Kunzmann entertained the 
proposal willingly enough: but when their master heard of 
it, he did everything in his power to dissuade him and even 
proposed to give him his own daughter in marriage. But 
this notion only made Clement hurry his departure the more r 
so averse was he to any idea of marriage ! In the autumn, 
therefore, of 1782, the two friends started again for Rome,, 
on foot as before, praying and singing and suffering every 
kind of hardship. When they were obliged to sleep in the 
open air, Clement would draw a circle on the soil and re- 
commend himself and his friend to the care of their Guardian 
Angels and the Holy Apostles in the centre of the circle where 
they rested. When they had fully satisfied their piety in 
Rome, they walked on to Tivoli, where they hoped to find 
the much-wished-for hermitage. On the 25 th of December 



12 From 1782 to 1783. 

of the preceding year, a Benedictine, Father Barnabas Chia- 
ramonti (who afterwards, was elected Pope in a conclave 
lield at Venice under the name of Pius VII) had been pro- 
moted to the Bishopric of Tivoli. To him our pious pilgrims 
presented themselves and craved permission to found a her- 
mitage in his diocese. This holy and learned Prelate exa- 
mined them carefully in order to prove their spirit and set 
before them the duties and the difficulties attending such a 
life ; but finding them constant in their intention he blessed 
them and gave them the hermit's habit. On this occasion 
our venerable servant of God took the name of "Clement" 
and Kunzmann that of "Emanuel".* 

In the midst of an olive grove stood a small church which 
they were appointed to look after and alongside was the 
little dwelling assigned to them with a small orchard. — 

In this little church> which was called "La Madonna di 
Quintiliolo" there was a Byzantine picture of our Lady over 
the High Altar which was held in great veneration by the 
people. They had recourse to her to obtain a good harvest : 
and every year from the 7 th of May till the Feast of the As- 
sumption this picture was exposed in the Cathedral of Ti- 
voli and daily devotions performed in her honour. The 
church is called Quintiliolo, because it is built on the ruins 
of the old Villa of Quintilio Varo, the unfortunate Captain 
of the Emperor Augustus.** Even to this day people admire 
the magnificent ruins which serve as a shelter to the shep- 
herds and their flocks in a storm. 

* Clement of Klinkowstroem deposed as follows : "He took this name 
in order to have St. Clement of Ancira as his patron, this Saint having 
suffered a martyrdom of 38 years, thereby proving gloriously the constancy 
of his faith and his courage in bearing adversity. Having had F. Hof- 
bauer as my Godfather, I took the same name and have in consequence 
always kept a picture of the Saint and martyr which F. Hofbauer gave 
me." ■ — 

** Varo was defeated with all his army in the German forests; which 
made Augustus exclaim : 

**Vare! Varel redde mihi legiones meas?'' 



From 1782 to 1783. 13 

This spot is not only venerable from its antiquity but 
is also one of the finest positions in the neighbourhood of 
Tivoli. Towards the East there is a beautiful view of the 
Town, of the Temple of Sybil, of the grand waterfall of Ariene 
and in the distance, of the mountains which form a back- 
ground to this magnificent picture. On the other side, the 
Roman Campagna stretches out its vast plain to the Medi- 
terranean and the eye rests on the eternal city, the cupola 
of St. Peter's standing out impressively against the clear sky. 

This was the spot assigned to Clement and his companion 
where they spent a year of austerity, yet of complete peace 
and happiness. The crops which they planted and cultivated 
in their little orchard were almost their only sustenance: 
but what was wanting in corporal comforts was made up in 
spiritual ones. The beauties of nature led them to contem- 
plate the wonders and infinite goodness of the Creator : and 
when they turned their eyes from the ruins of Pagan Rome 
to the marvels of Christianity, their hearts were filled with 
the tenderest gratitude towards that God who had deigned 
to allow them to be born in the Catholic Church. But such 
a rest was not long allowed to Clement, who. was to endure 
all the trials which our Lord permits to fall upon such gen- 
erous souls as He destines to do great works for His glory 
and for the good of others. So happy did he find himself 
in this solitude, so far from any disturbance from without, 
and so near to God, that in later years when the multiplici- 
ty of his cares and obligations prevented his giving as much 
time to prayer as he wished, he would look back longingly 
to this hermitage and exclaim to those around him : "O ! if you 
did but know the delicious position of Tivoli! There one 
feels one's soul quite separated from the world and entirely 
united with God!" He would have gladly continued to 
spend his days there: but our Lord did not intend him for 
a contemplative but for an active life of labour in His Vine- 
yard. Therefore, after the solemn procession of the 15 tlr 



14 From 1783 to 1784. 

of August, when the picture of our Lady was taken back to 
Quintiliolo, Clement was again compelled to quit his be- 
loved solitude and to return to Vienna: where in 1783 he 
resumed his studies. — His Divine Master began his minis- 
try after 40 days' prayer and fasting in the desert: and His 
faithful servant was prepared for his apostolate by the soli- 
tude of Tivoli and the intimate communications he had there 
held with God. — 



CHAPTER V. 

Clement returns to Vienna to resume his studies. He con- 
tracts AN INTIMATE FRIENDSHIP WITH TADDEO HUBL. 

[From 1783 to 1784.] 

A grave difficulty arose on his return to Vienna as to 
where he should find the means to go on with his studies. 
HLe trusted mainly in Divine Providence which did not fail 
him: but in the meanwhile, he did not give up his baker's 
trade, which at least procured him the necessaries of life. 

Dividing his day between his work and his studies, he did 
not, in consequence, neglect spiritual things. Every Sunday 
lie went to the Metropolitan Church of St. Stephen to serve 
mass. There were three sisters named Maul, who lived in 
the neighbourhood and frequented this church, who were 
very much struck and edified at the extraordinary recol- 
lection and piety of this new Server. It happened one Sun- 
day that a violent downpour of rain came on just after 
the service was over and obliged them to take refuge in the 
vestibule of the church. Clement was coming out at the same 
moment and seeing their distress, offered to run and get 
them a carriage to go home. The Ladies gratefully assented : 
and Clement, without minding the torrents of rain, went and 
got one. The sisters insisted on his sharing it with them and 



From 17 S3 to 1784. 15 

Clement accepted their offer. This seemingly simple, every- 
day incident was the turning-point in his life. For these 
Ladies entered into conversation with him and being more 
and more charmed with his replies, asked him why he did 
not go on with his studies ? and if he did not wish to become 
a Priest? Poor Clement answered, somewhat sadly, "that 
this had been his ardent desire from his infancy, but that 
he had been obliged to give it up for want of means." 

"If there be no other impediment", exclaimed the eldest 
sister, "be of good heart, for we will see about the means and 
supply all your wants." 

And they were as good as their word and from henceforth 
they undertook all necessary expenses, not only for himself 
but for a friend of his, of whom we will say a few words. 

One day Clement was coming out of the church, when he 
saw a little notice on the door of a lad who offered his ser- 
vices as a copyist. "This must be some poor and humble stud- 
ent", he said to himself and immediately determined to find 
him out. He was a certain Thaddeus Hiibl, of Cermna, in 
the Diocese of Koniggratz, the son of a forrester of Prince 
Lichtenstein's, poor in this world's goods, it was true, but 
good, pious, and full of talent. Clement soon conceived the 
warmest affection for him and introduced him to his kind 
patronesses, who, finding he had the same desire as Clement, 
extended likewise their generosity towards him. This youth 
became the intimate friend and companion of Clement dur- 
ing the rest of his life and an eminent member of the new 
congregation about to be established in Poland. Our Lord 
abundantly blessed these pious sisters for their charity ; and 
they had the joy before their deaths, of seeing Clement's 
reputation everywhere established and of hearing him preach 
in the Ursuline Church. 

Through this unexpected and providential generosity, 
Clement was, at last, enabled to give up his trade and devote 
himself entirely to his studies. He related one day, how hard 



16 From 1783 to 1784. 

he had worked at that time : "I spent the whole day and often 
the night in studying and not to be overcome by sleep, I used 
to walk up and down, holding a candle in one hand and my 
book in the other, so as to save time." But he did not, there- 
fore, neglect prayer or spiritual exercises. On Feast Days and 
Sundays especially he would devote himself to his religious 
duties, serving one mass after the other in the Church of St. 
Saviour's and always with the same fervour of spirit. At this 
time, likewise, he was thrown into intimate relations with 
F. Albert Diesbach, one of the members of the suppressed 
Society of Jesus, whose ardent zeal and great ability was 
then employed in combating the Josephism of the day and 
reviving the religious faith of the people. Curiously enough, 
it was through him that Clement became first acquainted 
with the ascetic works of St. Alphonsus Liguori, with which 
he was at once greatly impressed and delighted. 

Although Clement was so keen in his studies, yet at the 
end of the scholastic year 1784 he found himself compelled 
to give up the Vienna University, in consequence of the con- 
duct of the new Professors, who endeavoured in every way 
to sow the seeds of Protestantism and infidelity in the hearts 
of their pupils. One day, a certain Professor having held 
some outrageous language of this sort, Clement could stand 
it no longer ; and rising bravely from his seat, interrupted 
the speaker, saying: "Sir, what you are teaching us is not 
in conformity with the doctrines of the Catholic Church," 
and then leaving his place, he walked out of the schools. 
It is fair to add that this public reproof had a good effect 
and made such an impression on the mind of the Professor 
that, on reflection, he felt that his pupil was in the right and 
renounced ever after his heretical teaching. Many years 
after, this old Professor met Clement in the street and having 
asked him "whether he were not his old pupil Hofbauer ?" On 
his reply in the affirmative, he thanked him warmly for his 
timely correction, which, though at the moment it had filled 



From 1784 to 1785. 17 

him with anger and shame, had saved his soul and opened 
his eyes to his error. — 

This being the wretched state of things in Vienna, Cle- 
ment felt he must seek elsewhere for the completion of his 
studies : and thus Providence led him by strange and unex- 
pected ways to the place where he was to find his true vo- 
cation. 

CHAPTER VI. 

He goes back to Rome : joins the Redemptorist Congrega- 
tion AND IS ORDAINED PRIEST. 

[From 1784 to 1785.] 

AFTER long and earnest prayer to God that He might show 
him the path He wished him to follow, Clement received 
an internal assurance that he was to return to Rome, where 
he would attain the object of all his wishes and prepare him- 
self in the best way for the Priesthood. 

When once our Lord had thus spoken to him, all obsta- 
cles seemed easily overcome : and so great were his Faith 
and confidence in God, that, in answer to all objections, he 
only replied simply : "Our Lord will smooth away every dif- 
ficulty." 

He first told his plan to his friend Thaddeus and asked 
him to accompany him. Thaddeus was very ill and in 
Hospital, so that he was greatly astonished at . the invita- 
tion. "And how is it possible for me, ill as I am, and with- 
out a farthing, to undertake such a journey?" Clement 
replied: "As to your health, God will restore it, and as to 
the money, I undertake to collect it". — And so it turned 
out: Thaddeus suddenly and unexpectedly recovered and 
Clement received from his old benefactors enough for the 
journey. They went on foot and were visibly protected by 
God in the midst of many dangers. On one occasion a huge 

2 



18 From 17 S 4 to 17 So. 

black dog flew at Thaddeus who was very much frightened. 
Clement simply said: "Let us say the Psalm my mother 
taught me : Qui habitat in adjutorio altissimV ', and then we shall 
be free from all dangers." — 

When they got to Rome they took a lodging near the Ba- 
silica of Sta. Maria Maggiore and determined to go there on 
the ringing of the first bell in the morning. At dawn of day 
however, the first sound came from another little church 
near and they hastened in there to pour out their hearts be- 
fore God in thankfulness for their safety and in earnest 
prayer for guidance as to their future path. In the church, 
was a religious Community absorbed in meditation. Their 
great recollection and the expression of happiness and peace 
in their faces struck Clement at once and filled him with 
love and veneration towards them. Coming out of the church, 
he asked a child to what order those Religious belonged? 
The child replied : "They are Redemptorists : and some day 
you will be one of them!" — These words astonished Cle- 
ment, who felt as if our Lord had spoken by the mouth of 
a child to make known His Divine will. Without any further 
hesitation therefore, he knocked at the door of the monas- 
tery and asked the Superior the object of his Congrega- 
tion. Great was his delight when he found out that it was a 
Congregation of Priests lately founded by Monsignor Liguori 
for whose works he had such a veneration: and that the 
main object of the Institution was to give missions and to 
bring back to God the most abandoned souls, and those who 
were most in need of spiritual aid. The Superior further in- 
formed him that they were consecrated to Godby three simple 
vows of poverty, chastity and obedience ; and that they bound 
themselves by a vow of perseverance to remain in that holy 
estate until death. But Clement's amazement was at its 
height, when, at the end of their conversation, the Superior 
spontaneously offered to admit him into the Congregation — 
he, a perfect stranger, a foreigner, without any money and 



From 1784 to 1785. 19 

33 years of age! He saw in this unexpected solution of his 
•doubts, however, the hand of God and accepted the offer 
with the deepest gratitude and humility. — 

But God who does not often permit His servants to enjoy 
unmixed consolation in this world, subjected Clement to a 
sharp trial. His friend Thaddeus did not at all approve of 
the step Clement had taken ; he declared that he had acted 
with far too great precipitation in taking so important a step 
and that it was especially cruel to abandon him after he had 
induced him to undertake so arduous a pilgrimage. Clement 
seeing his friend in such a state of annoyance, had recourse 
to prayer and spent the whole of the following night im- 
ploring our Lord to grant to his friend also the grace of a 
vocation to the Religious state. And his prayers were imme- 
diately answered : for the next morning as he came out of 
Sta. Maria Maggiore, Thaddeus met him and said : "Do you 
know what has happened? I am going to stay with you and 
I also am to enter the Congregation." — 

Clement's heart was so full of gratitude and joy that he 
went back into the Basilica to pour it out in thanksgiv- 
ing : and he declared that all his life long the remembrance 
of this great grace would abide with him. One day, many 
years after, he happened to be speaking of his youth and 
saying how much it had cost him then to keep the Fasts of 
the Church, perhaps owing to the hard work he had in his 
trade: "but", he added, "from the moment I entered the Con- 
gregation, I fasted not only with facility but with joy, in 
gratitude to God for the sudden vocation He vouchsafed to 
give both to me and to my dear friend." — 

The Superior of the Redemptorists, made no difficulty 
about receiving Thaddeus into the Congregation. But as he 
was a Foreigner, poor, ignorant of the language and 23 
years old, which is above the age when ordinary candidates 
are received, it required the special hand of God in the 
matter for the Superior to make so extraordinary an excep- 



20 From 1784 to 1785. 

tion to the ordinary rule. But these two youths thus un- 
expectedly received into the little house of St. Giuliano, 
were destined to be, more than all the rest, the columns and 
ornaments of the growing Congregation. 

At that time, its holy Founder, St. Alphonso Liguori was 
still alive ; and when he heard of the entrance of the two- 
Germans into the Congregation he was filled with joy. And 
while the Neapolitan Fathers laughed at the idea proposed by 
them to found a house some day beyond the Alps, Alphonsua 
highly approved of it and said in a spirit of prophecy : "God 
will not fail to promote His Glory by their means. Their mission, 
however , will be different from ours. In the midst of the Lutherans 
and Calvinists among whom they will be placed, the catechism will be 
more necessdry than preaching. These good Priests ivill do a great 
ivorlc: but they will have need of greater light.'''' 

His Fatherly Benediction and the fruit of his prayers 
speedily reached Rome and strengthened the vocation of his 
first German sons. 

Clement andThaddeus began their noviciate in the House 
of St. Giuliano on the Esquiline, which was then the resi- 
dence of the Superior and of the Procurator General. This 
House was behind the Church of St. Eusebio. (It was 
destroyed in 1873 in order to make way for the "Piazza 
Vittorio EmmanueleW On the 24 th of Oct., being the Feast of 
the Archangel Raphael, they both received the habit at the 
hands of F. Landi, who, being one of the earliest and most 
faithful Companions of the holy Founder, knew better than 
any one else how to infuse his spirit into the souls of his 
two novices. Under the direction of this master Clement 
was initiated into the duties of the Religious life. Hardly 
any details have been preserved of his doings during the 
noviciate: but as he was so soon chosen to transplant the 
Congregation beyond the Alps, we can judge of the emi- 
nent virtue which made his Superior at once consider him 
worthy of so important a post. One little fact is mentioned 



From 1784 to 1785. 21 

•of him showing how averse he was to any thing which 
.savoured of luxury or self-indulgence. Not knowing the 
custom in Italy of changing one's linen whenever along walk 
Tiad overheated one, he looked upon it as too fastidious a 
proceeding on the part of his fellow-novices, and one day 
addressed the master of novices as follows : "Revd. Father ! 
I, with one change of linen, which, in fact, I had on my 
back, made a journey of 400 leagues and was none the 
worse. And now, for a little walk of a league or two, must 
one make such a fuss?" — From that day, the novices 
dreaded the excess of his zeal for mortification in which, as 
in every thing else, he was a model and an example to 
them all. 

He was of a strong constitution and used to the sub- 
stantial and somewhat heavy food of the north: hence, he 
suffered not a little from the very light meals of the Ro- 
mans. Afterwards he related smiling that so terribly did 
he suffer, the first few months, from positive hunger and 
thirst, that it was all he could do to refrain from eating the 
bunches of grapes which hung outside his window ! — 

In consequence of their age and still more owing to their 
extraordinary fervour, the noviciate of the two friends was 
considerably shortened , so that on the Feast of St. Joseph 
(19 th of March, 1785), they made their Religious Profession in 
the hands of F. Francesco di Paola, who was then Superior 
General of the Congregation. This great favour was quickly 
followed by another, which had been the earnest wish of 
Clement's heart for so many years. For they were sent 
directly after their profession to the College at Frosinone 
and on the 29 th of March were ordained Priests at Alatri, 
the Bishop of Veroli being ill. — Alatri being only 5 kilo- 
metres from Frosinone they were able to return home at 
midday. The Rector, wishing to prove the virtue of the 
new Priests, ordered Clement to serve, and Thaddeus to 
read at table, while he made no difference whatever in the 



22 From 1784 to 1785. 

quality or quantity of the food, but behaved as if it had 
been an ordinary day. But so far from this being a morti- 
fication to Clement, it only added to his joy: as he had 
bound himself to the Priesthood not to increase his honour 
and dignity, but to be able to do more for the glory of God 
and the good of souls. The young Priests continued stu- 
dying so diligently and practised all religious virtues with 
such fervour, that F. Altarelli, a noted Neapolitan Mission- 
ary, who was then their companion, declared that they 
were a subject of edification and admiration to the whole 
Community. 



THE SECOND BOOK. 

FROM F. CLEMENT'S DEPARTURE FOR WARSAW 
IN 1786 TO HIS RETURN TO VIENNA IN 1808. 



CHAPTER I. 

F. Clement's journey to Warsaw. 

[From 1786 to 1787.] 

FATHER Clement and his companion had not long been 
ordained Priests when they renewed their petition to 
the Superior General for leave to try and transplant a branch 
of the Congregation to the north of the Alps. Leave was 
gladly granted, for it was the object for which they had been 
originally admitted. Accompanied by the prayers and good 
wishes of all their brethren, they started accordingly to- 
wards the end of the year 1785 and decided to begin first 
by Vienna, passing thro' the Tyrol. But if ever there were 
a bad moment to begin a religious foundation in Vienna it 
was then ! By one stroke of the pen a thousand monasteries 
had been suppressed, including the most famous of the an- 
cient Abbeys. They found it, therefore, impossible to at- 
tempt to start their work in Austria at that moment and 
accordingly wrote to the Father General, explaining this 
sad state of things and placing themselves at his disposal to 
preach the Gospel elsewhere. The F. General went to the 

23 



24 From 1786 to 1787. 

S. Congregation of the Propagation of the Faith, who joy- 
fully accepted the offer of their services for Stralsund in 
Pomerania which then belonged to Sweden. This was a 
mission full of difficulties, the Government being so hostile 
to. the Church and there being very few Catholics in that city. 
But F. Clement never was deterred by difficulties and espe- 
cially when the will of God had been made known to him 
by the mouth of his Superiors.* Of this stay at Vienna we 
have very few details. We only know that they could not 
exercise their sacred ministry ; but that the edifying life of 
F. Clement and the loving , charitable temperament of F. 
Thaddeus, made a most favourable impression on the Vien- 
nese and ensured to them friends and benefactors for the 
future foundation there. 

Sent by the Holy See and provided with the necessary fa- 
culties by their Superiors** our two Missioners left Vienna 
for Warsaw in October 1786, which was the residence of 
the Superior of the Missions in the North, who was the 
Apostolic Nunzio at the Polish Court.*** 

An unexpected consolation was granted to Clement by 
our Lord soon after leaving Vienna. While sailing down the 
Danube, they found on their vessel a poorly dressed Her- 
mit : Clement drew near him and discovered that it was his 
old companion in the hermitage of Tivoli, Emanuel Kunz- 



* In the Archbishop's register Office in Vienna very interesting docu- 
ments have lately been found, among the rest an account which F. Clement 
had written of his first arrival in Vienna and of the beginnings of the 
House at S. Bennone. 

** It was not till 1798 that Clement was appointed by the Superior 
General, F. Blasucci, Vicar General of the transalpine provinces. 

*** This was Monsignor Ferdinand M. Saluzzo, Duke of Corrigliano. 
Pius VI. had named him Archbishop of Carthagena, and after his return 
from Warsaw in 1793, he was made Delegate of Urbino, where he suf- 
fered very much from the French invasion. In 1801, Pius VI. created 
him Cardinal: but because he refused to assist at Napoleon's 2nd mar- 
riage, he was imprisoned in various cities of France. He died in Rome 
on the 3rd f Nov. 1816 and was buried in the Church of St. Anastasia. 



From 1786 to 1787. 25 

mann, who was then on a pilgrimage to visit the Tombs of 
the three Kings of the Magi at Cologne. Great was their 
mutual joy at this unexpected meeting and finding that Cle- 
ment was already a Priest, Emanuel implored his blessing. 
Clement perceiving in this a sign of Providential guidance, 
proposed to his friend to join the Congregation and follow 
them to Poland. Emanuel joyfully accepted the invitation 
and was the first novice north of the Alps. 

As a man of experience and solid virtue, he rendered most 
invaluable services to our two Priests to whom he acted as 
laybrother. To prove how favourable was the impression 
produced by our three travellers, we will mention the fol- 
lowing anecdote. On their way towards Znaim, which jour- 
ney they performed on foot, they were joined by the School- 
master of Retz, who was driving on the same road. The 
weather and the roads were horrible ; and when the good 
man saw these poor Priests on foot, he stopped and cour- 
teously invited them to come into his carriage and to lodge 
with him for the night, offering also to be their guide to 
Znaim the next morning. The weather being so bad, F. 
Clement gratefully accepted his offer. And his conversation 
and manner made such a favourable impression both on him 
and his family, that they felt convinced they had harboured 
a Saint and accordingly preserved as a relic everything 
that he had used on that occasion. The bed on which he 
slept was never used from that year 1786 to 1823; and 
only on that occasion by Father Udalric Petrak as an ex- 
ceptional favour, because he had been Clement's disciple. 
They were delighted with a letter which Clement wrote to 
them from Znaim 12 tk of Oct. 1786) to thank them for their 
kindness, to assure them that he would always remember 
them in the Holy Sacrifice and to implore their prayers, so 
that he and his companions should faithfully fulfil the duties 
of their state. This letter to which Clement had added a 
little memento from the Holy House at Loreto and a pic- 



26 Beginning of the 

ture of the Ven. F. Gennaro M. Sarnelli* was preserved by 
the family as a precious treasure. And so it happened that 
in the year 1864 when documents were sought for on all 
sides for the cause of F. Clements Beatification, this letter 
was found carefully preserved by the descendants of that 
pious family, who likewise affirmed that a blessing from 
Heaven had fallen on their house from the hour of Cle- 
ment's arrival. 

From Znaim,_ Clement made a little detour to see his 
native country, to pay a visit to his sister Barbara, to pray 
over the tomb of his mother, who had died the year before 
to his great sorrow, and to offer the Holy Sacrifice for both 
his parents. Then he resumed his apostolic journey with 
his companions, which was the more fatiguing because it 
was done on foot and in the depth of a very severe winter, 
the snow being deep in many places. Finally, in February 
1787, protected by their Angel Guardians, they arrived 
safely at Warsaw, the Polish Capital, which was to be the 
scene of their first labours. 



CHAPTER II. 

Beginning of the Foundation in Warsaw. The state of 
Poland. The first disciples of Father Clement. 

NO sooner had our Missioners arrived at Warsaw than 
they went to present their respects to, and receive instruc- 
tions from the Nunzio. Monsg. Saluzzo being a Neapolitan, 
received the sons of St. Alphonsus Liguori with joy : and 
wishing to make more intimate acquaintance with them, he 
ordered them to remain in Warsaw till the end of the spring 
when their journey would be more easily accomplished. 

* This was a celebrated Neapolitan Missionary and one of the first Com- 
panions of St. Alphonsus. He died in the odour of sanctity in the year 
1744. 



Foundation in Warsaw. 27 

Very soon, the thousands of Germans who inhabited 
Warsaw made up their minds that they would do their ut- 
most to keep them in that city. For the need of German 
Priests was urgent: as, since the suppression of the Jesuits, 
their National Church of St. Bennone was so deserted that 
not a single German Ecclesiastic could he found either to 
say mass or instruct the children , even in the rudiments of 
Catholic Doctrine. 

They intended F. Clement, therefore, to remain with 
them altogether. He replied that he could not go from the 
orders of his Superior General. — Then they petitioned 
the Nunzio, the Bishop, and the Primate ; and at last ob- 
tained leave for them to remain in Warsaw till the answer 
from the Superior General could be received. In the mean 
time, our two Fathers began to preach and administer the 
Sacraments in the German Church before mentioned of St. 
Bennone. King Stanislas having heard of their arrival, de- 
sired to see them and they were presented to him by the 
Nunzio. The Missioners made the most favourable im- 
pression upon the King and he was delighted with Cle- 
ment's clear explanation of the object of the Redemptorist 
Congregation. At the end of the audience, the King ex- 
pressed the strongest desire that they should remain in 
Warsaw and promised that his Government should protect 
them against all adversaries, and would provide for all their 
wants. He also promised them 5000 florins a year from his 
private purse : while the Germans undertook to make them an 
annual payment of 1500 florins. But our Lord, who wished 
to prove the virtue of His servants, allowed these fine pro- 
mises to remain a dead letter: for in 1793 on the 23 rd of May, 
we find F. Clement writing: "Our house is kept going by a 
miracle: for what we receive is so little that it scarcely 
suffices to pay for the candles, oil and wine of the Church. 
The King has not found himself in a position to fulfil his 
promises." And again, in 1800, he says: "The Confraternity 



28 The State of Poland. 

of St. Bennone, who administer the revenues of the Church, 
have not paid us anything for six years, for the houses be- 
longing to the Church are heavily mortgaged." — 

In the mean time, the answer had come from Propaganda 
and from the Father General, giving leave for them to re- 
main in Warsaw : so that the two Fathers were speedily put 
in possession of the Church of St. Bennone with the little 
house adjoining and could begin their work. Privations, 
fatigues and difficulties were not wanting, however in this 
new and humble foundation. Their whole fortune consisted 
in three Thalers ; the little house had scarcely any furniture, 
and in fact, one table and two chairs, which they turned into 
l3eds, was all it contained! The walls were so damp besides 
that the water poured down them. The good laybrother 
Flmanuel knew nothing of cooking, so that F. Clement had 
to help him. And very often he went straight from the 
kitchen into the Pulpit there to dispense the food of the 
Word of God. The very few necessary kitchen utensils had 
T)een borrowed: all except the spoons, which Clement had 
liimself made out of wood. We must not fancy, however, 
that such utter poverty discouraged the good Fathers. On 
the contrary, they rejoiced in it for the love of God: feeling 
sure that as they were labouring for Him, He would not 
allow them to want the absolute necessaries of life . . 

What distressed them far more than their own wants, 
was the miserable state in which they found religion in 
Poland. The spirit of infidelity, always hostile to the 
Church, had there made frightful progress. The license 
under the name of liberty which the Protestants had ob- 
tained from Catherine the 2 nd of Russia, had annihilated 
that which had been Poland's greatest strength — namely, 
the salutary influence which Catholicism had exercised on 
the public life of the State. Jansenist and Gallican doctrines 
Tiad likewise crept into Poland , alienating men's minds 



The State of Poland. 29 

from the Holy See, and depriving them of the frequent re- 
ception of the Sacraments , that inexhaustible source of 
grace and virtue. Throughout Poland also, Freemasonry 
had been established: and inscribed on its books were the 
names of some of the oldest nobility, ministers of state and 
Priests. German Philosophy without God was glorified into 
pure Science: the works of Voltaire, Rousseau and other 
French writers of the same stamp were eagerly read : while 
good books cff any sort were almost impossible to obtain ; nor 
was there any library or bookseller who cared to provide vo- 
lumes for which there was no sale. With the decay of Faith 
there was an equal decay in morals. The bad examples 
given by the nobility had been copied by the commercial 
classes. Sensual pleasures and religious indifference cha- 
racterised the whole population of Warsaw. Father Clement's 
writing on the 23 nd of May 1793, thus expressed himself: 
"Scandalous vices have nowhere come to such a pitch as in 
this city. From (even) the Priesthood down to the poorest 
beggar, all are corrupt and I see no hope of amendment. 
I fear lest God should ' remove their candlestick out of its 
place' . Let us pray that they may repent before it be too 
late!" Prophetic words which were but too abundantly ful- 
filled in the destruction of the Kingdom of Poland the fol- 
lowing year. — 

Equally sad, in a political sense, was the condition of the 
nobility. With refined cunning Catherine had managed to 
create a Russian party among the Polish magnates, which 
sowed disunion in their camp. The King himself was with- 
out character or energy and more anxious to flatter Cathe- 
rine's caprices than to be mindful of the welfare of his sub- 
jects. Add to this, the discontent produced in the country 
by the cession of territory to the neighbouring states ; as the 
predominant feeling in the mind of every Pole is hatred of 
foreigners and especially of those in whose favour the ces- 
sion had been made. Above all, the secret societies fanned 



30 Foundation in Warsaw. 

the flame, so that the disunion soon had still more serious 
consequences. 

We can easily imagine, then, the difficulties of Clement's 
position. As an Apostle and a Religious, he was a special 
thorn in the eyes of the atheists; as a foreigner he was an 
object of scandal to the false patriots; and so much so, that 
for a long time not a single Pole would come near them : so 
that the poor ** Bennonites" (as the Redemptorists were called, 
from the name of their church) were declarefd more than 
once to be Lutherans ! — 

They remained, therefore, in this great city * as in the 
midst of a hostile camp. The calumnies and persecutions 
of every sort which rained upon them at this time, grieved 
Clement less for himself than for his companions, some of 
whom were not yet inured to such sufferings. He wrote in 
May of that year, that, several times, he was on the point 
of leaving Warsaw and returning to Italy : but was deterred 
by the Nunzio, who always implored him to persevere and 
to bear his trials courageously. Clement was, at last, 
persuaded that it was God's will that he should go on striv- 
ing to cultivate this wild and neglected Vineyard. And 
this intimate conviction strengthened his faith in God — 
for, as his friend F. Frederick Rinn asserted, it was enough 
to say to him: "This is God's wilF for Clement to brave every 
obstacle and face enemies however numerous. Notwith- 
standing all these difficulties, however, our missioners' work 
among their neighbours began to tell and to bring forth 
abundant fruit: so much so that Clement himself wrote 
* ? that in desiring them to remain, the Nunzio had followed 
a Divine inspiration". — 

The extreme poverty in which the work was begun did 

* Warsaw contained at that time 124,000 inhabitants , among whom 
were 28,000 Jews. In 1798 it was made the seat of a Bishop, as be- 
fore, it had been under the Archbishop of Gnesna, Primate of Poland, 
who governed it by means of an Archdeacon invested with the dignity 
of Vicar General. 



Foundation in Warsaw. 31 

not last, as God raised up friends and benefactors to 
come to their assistance and so unlimited was Clement's 
confidence in God, that, on one occasion, being in grievous 
straits, he threw himself down before the Tabernacle and 
knocking at the door, implored the help of Our Lord. At 
the very same moment, a gentleman came and presented 
him with a large sum of money. Having thus proved the 
faith of His Servant, God not only provided him with what 
was needful for his Congregation, but with sufficient means 
to relieve the poor and to repair the poor little ruined house 
in which they had lodged for 14. years. To this work, 
many contributed— some giving even their manual labour — 
so that before long a spacious building was erected enough 
not only to accomodate the growing Community, but also 
to carry on other works which Clement was about to start. 
To enlarge the Church, which, at first, would only hold 
about a 1000 persons, he built, in 1801, a large side Chapel 
to which you ascended by twelve steps : so that by degrees 
the Services could be better performed. The original Church 
of St. Bennone , placed on a little hill at the end of what 
was called the "New City", was built in the 17 th Century by 
Ladislaus IV. and his wife Cecilia Renata. There were 
three Altars: over the principal one was a statue of St. 
Bennone, Bishop of Misnia and Apostle of the Slavs : but as 
it had been injured by time, F. Clement replaced it by a 
fine picture of the Saint. Below was a little picture of the 
Blessed Virgin, under the title of "Mary Help of Christians". 
One of the other Altars was dedicated to St. Joseph, whom 
Clement had chosen as Patron of the House and whom he 
looked upon as his advocate on every occasion. Upon this 
Altar, according to the Feasts of the day, he exposed other 
pictures, such as that of Our Holy Redeemer, of St. Michael, 
St. Raphael, etc. The third altar was dedicated to our Lord 
and there a Statue representing Jesus bound to the column 
was a very favourite object of devotion to the people. 



32 The first Disciples 

In the new Side Chapel which he had built, Clement 
placed a very fine picture of Jesus of Nazareth and another 
of the Mother of Dolours, which had been sent him from 
Vienna. 

Such was the Church in which, for so many years, Cle- 
ment exercised the sacred functions of the ministry. But 
alas ! it has now been converted into a workshop and no 
trace remains of the former Sanctuary: while instead of 
the voices of prayer and praise no sound is now heard within 
its walls save the reverberation of hammers and the noise 
of machinery. 

As neither F. Clement nor F. Thaddeus were well versed 
in the Polish language, they called in two or three Polish 
Priests to their aid. The German Priests were only six in 
number: but so zealous and so edifying was their conduct, 
that the Nunzio could not find words strong enough to ex- 
press his admiration of their merit. The King and the Senate 
were equally delighted: and in consequence the new Con- 
gregation was formally acknowledged, in 1793, as a Religious 
Corporation. — 

Among this little body, F. Clement was the first Rector and 
F. Iestersheim, a native of Silesia, was Minister ; and being 
an excellent musician, he had also the charge of the Choir. 
Later on, Clement named F. Thaddeus as Rector; and after 
his death, F. Iestersheim. This Father was most highly 
esteemed by Clement, who proposed him, in 1808, as his 
Successor in the post of Vicar General. — 

The two laybrothers, Emanuel Kunzmann and Matthew 
Widhalm, were also men of rare virtue. The latter had 
known Clement in Vienna and had come on purpose to join 
the Congregation at Warsaw: but when he arrived at St. 
Bennone he was seized with such trepidation, that he 
almost made up his mind to retrace his steps then and there, 
without even seeing F. Clement. By a special internal 
warning, Clement became aware of this and hastened to 



of Father Clement. 33 

meet him and lead him into the house. This was enough to 
remove all hesitation from Matthew's mind: and he at once 
asked to be admitted into the Congregation. He was always 
an exemplary laybrother, followed the missioners to Bu- 
charest, was greatly beloved by his superior (who called 
him the "Holy Father"), and finally closed a life full of merit 
in the Redemptorist House in Vienna, in 1826. 

The first Pole who was admitted into the Congregation 
was John Dukla Podgorski whom Clement speaks of as a 
youth of singular piety, extraordinary talent and equal 
innocence. Later on (1799) he praises his ardour for reli- 
gious perfection and his zeal in preaching and hearing con- 
fessions. He made his vows in 1 794, and in 1797 was ordain- 
ed priest. But before that, Clement had made him preach 
constantly, and from his great readiness of speech and extra- 
ordinary talent, his sermons produced extraordinary fruit. 
When the Congregation was suppressed in Poland, F. Pod- 
gorski was transferred to Vienna, where his distinguished 
qualities attracted the notice of the Nunzio, who proposed 
him as Bishop of Bucharest. And he would have been 
compelled to accept it if he had not, by earnest entreaties, 
induced the Nunzio to desist from his proposal. 

In the same letter (of the 22 nd of July 1799) Clement 
praises also his subdeacon, Michael Sadowski. 

Another Pole, Charles Blumenau* made his religious 
profession in 1796. And several other Poles followed his 
example. So that Clement was able to dispense with the 
services of the secular priests and appoint his own religious 
Sons to all the necessary offices. 

In 1799, the Community of St. Bennone amounted to 25 
persons of whom 9 were priests: two deacons, 2 sub- 
deacons, 3 clerical students, 2 novices, and 7 laybro- 
thers. The number of priests was not greater, because 

* He was horn in Warsaw and his real name was Kwiatzowski, which, 
translated into German, was Blumenau or Blumenauer. 



34 The first Disciples of Father Clement. 

some had been sent to Mietau, and three had died in 1796, 
besides, one deacon. Their deaths were a heavy blow to 
Clement, for they were all men eminent for learning and 
piety. Writing to his Superior General at that time he 
says : "These faithful servants have doubtless received their 
reward : but we are consumed with grief. Such, however, 
is evidently God's Will". 

In 1795, a French novice joined the Redemptorists who 
was destined to succeed Clement as Vicar General and 
render most important services to the Congregation. Joseph 
Passerat was born on the 30 th of April, 1792, at Joinville in 
Champagne and made his first studies in the seminary of 
Chalons sur Marne. He was going in for Theology when 
the Revolution of 1790 broke out. He was first thrown 
into prison and then taken out solely to serve in the Re- 
publican Army, where from his great height, he was ap- 
pointed drum-major and quarter-master. This forced ser- 
vice was the more painful to him from the fact that he was 
compelled to witness all the excesses of the revolutionary 
army. As soon as he could, therefore, he deserted and fled 
over the frontier, arriving in Germany and continuing his 
studies at Treves, Minister and Wiirzburg. In this last city 
he heard of Clement and his Congregation; and by a sud- 
den inspiration felt that his vocation lay with the Redemp- 
torists and hastened to Warsaw, where he was admitted, in 
1795, professed the next year and, in 1797, was ordained 
priest. He became one of Clement's best subjects and most 
devoted friends and we shall constantly find him referred to 
in this biography. The other three Frenchmen became also 
zealous and admirable Religious: but all died in the prime 
of life, very few years after their reception into the Congre- 
gation. We have only here mentioned one or two of Cle- 
ment's most eminent companions in Warsaw. But in speak- 
ing of the whole community on the 3 1 st of December 1 796, he 
writes : "They make equal progress in virtue as in science ; 



His Apostolic Works in Warsaw. 35 

and it is permitted to hope that through the grace of God, 
they will do great works both for the glory of God and the 
good of souls: and be an honour besides to the Congre- 
gation". 

Nor is it to be wondered at that such were Clement's 
first disciples ; as it was his extraordinary zeal that animat- 
ed, his fire that inflamed, and his example that encouraged 
them in every good work. 



CHAPTER III. 

His apostolic works in Warsaw. He founds an Orphanage. 
His profuse charity towards the Poor. 

WE have mentioned that St. Bennone was the National 
Church of the Germans and that Clement had undertaken 
to provide for their spiritual wants. But he did not intend 
to confine his labours to them. His charity embraced all 
needs: and whenever there was a want or a misery, there 
he hastened to bring relief. He made himself "all things to 
all men" that he might win them to Christ, while his mag- 
nificent charities gained the hearts of the most obdurate 
sinners. The wonderful thing was how he contrived to do 
so much in so short a time and with such small means. 

In the year 17 94, he was an eye-witness of the burning of 
one of the suburbs by the Russian general, Suwarow, 
whose barbarous troops massacred upwards 20 thousand 
persons, men, women and children. The house of St. Ben- 
none was just in front of this suburb and near the Vistula: 
and so the poor Religious had to watch these horrors without 
being able to alleviate them and with the additional dread 
of being themselves included in the universal ruin. The 
shells rained upon Warsaw: but luckily, though St. Ben- 
none was three times struck, none of the shells burst. 
F. Clement lifted up his heart to God in this emergency, 



36 His Apostolic Works in Warsaw. 

imploring Him to spare the city and promising to make a 
pilgrimage to the shrine of St. John Nepomucen in Prague 
if his prayer were granted. Our Lord hearkened to the 
pleadings of His faithful servant. Warsaw remained intact : 
and F. Clement kept his vow the following year. 

But the burning of the suburb and the miseries of the 
siege had left hundreds of orphan children dying of hunger 
in the streets. This sight so moved Clement's heart that he 
resolved at once to open a home for these poor little aban- 
doned creatures trusting in the Providence of God to find 
means for their support ; and thus to provide for the wants 
both of their souls and bodies. It was a beautiful sight to see 
him receiving these poor children, washing them himself 
and doing for them all the little services that a mother 
would have done. And when their ever increasing num- 
bers made their maintenance a matter of enormous diffi- 
culty, he did not hesitate to turn beggar, from house to 
house, in order to obtain additional funds. One day he 
went into an inn where he found several men gambling. 
He pleaded for his orphans ; some of the players looked up 
and in answer, insolently spit in his face. The servant of 
God, without appearing offended at this insult, quietly 
took out his handkerchief and wiped his face and then said: 
"That was for me — now do me the favour to give me some- 
thing else for my poor children". Such self-command and 
deep humility confounded the miscreant, who hastened to 
make amends by giving him a large sum, while he published 
everywhere the heroic gentleness of F. Clement, who ended 
by converting him entirely and becoming his confessor. 

If he were anxious about their temporal welfare, still more 
was he about the spiritual condition of his adopted children. 
He gathered them round him continually and spent hours 
in telling them Bible stories and in impressing upon them 
the holy fear and love of God. At other times he would 
lead them into the church, and making them kneel before 



He founds an Orphanage. 37 

the image of Our Lady would teach them to say this little 
ejaculatory prayer: "O! Mary, my Mother, if thou wilt pray 
for me, I shall be saved". 

When they were old enough to be taught a trade he 
opened workshops and got masters to teach them : but those 
who showed a talent for study and a vocation for religious 
life he placed among the younger students of the Con- 
gregation, so that their future was provided for in all ways. 
Nor did his charity confine itself to the boys. The orphan 
girls were equally provided for under the care of Sisters, 
to whom he gave a simple rule and who looked after the 
Christian education of these poor little ones. 

In fact, towards the poor of every kind and sort his in- 
genious charity knew no bounds. He relieved those who 
came to the door with food and clothing: but he visited 
himself the sick and destitute in their own homes, especially 
those who had seen better days : and many people gave him 
large sums to distribute in this manner, for he one day 
wrote : "If all the money which was given to me in Warsaw 
to spend among the poor were put into a sack, it would 
come to so large a sum that no man would be able to carry it !" 
Very often, however, the Father Minister, whose busi- 
ness it was to look after the temporalities, was in despair at 
his extraordinary liberality and would venture to remon- 
strate at the amount of his expenditure, which often exceeded 
their means. But his holy Superior would laughingly say : 
**Date et dabitur\ these two words are twin sisters. "Be not 
anxious for the morrow. God will provide". He was speci- 
ally desirous to increase this holy confidence in God in the 
minds of his priests and used to say : "Nothing will be want- 
ing to a priest who does his duty : and if there were but one 
loaf in all the world, God would give him half of it." 

In proportion as his charities increased, so did he win the 
confidence and affection of the people. The confessionals 
became crowded with penitents, and the sermons, which 



38 His Apostolic Works in Warsaw. 

were preached both in German and Polish, were eagerly 
listened to. 

Father Clement writing in August 1800 says: "The Feast 
of our Holy Redeemer was kept this year with unusual 
solemnity and a mission of eight days followed, closed by 
the Papal Benediction. On this occasion, the Benediction 
was given by F. Hiibl, who preached for the first time in 
Polish. The people were so moved that several times their 
sobs compelled the preacher to stop and the crowd was such 
that the church would not hold half of them." 

Six years only after the opening of the house, the Nunzio 
writing to the Father-General said : 

"I can assure your Reverence, for your consolation, that 
among all existing Religious orders, your Congregation have 
distinguished themselves beyond all others, not only for 
their zeal tempered with prudence; but for the extraordi- 
nary amount of conversions which have attended their 
labours." 

The increase in the number of the communicants was 
another proof of the success of their work. They amounted 
to 48,000 in 1799—1800. And the year before the disper- 
sion of the Congregation, (in 1807) the number amounted 
to 104,000 and would have been even more numerous, wrote 
the Superior General, "had the church been larger and the 
number of priests greater." 

From all parts of the city and from the neighbouring 
country places people were continually coming to St. Ben- 
none for spiritual help; so that it may be said to have 
served as a perpetual mission. We will here give the order 
of the day in that church, which kept the Fathers at work 
from 5 in the morning till 8 at night , save for the dinner- 
hour and subsequent short recreation. 

At 5 in the morning after the general meditation, a cer- 
tain number of the Fathers repaired to the confessional, 
while one of the younger ones gave catechism to the servant 



His Apostolic Works in Warsaw. 39 

class. Then followed a High Mass, during which time the 
people sang devout hymns in Polish. After mass a sermon 
was preached in the same language, generally by F. Blu- 
menauer, whose preaching produced extraordinary fruits, 
the people hanging, as it were, upon his words. He used to 
take as his text the Gospel of the preceding Sunday : and as 
he preached almost every day, a complete course of instruc- 
tion was thus given on dogmatic and moral doctrines. After 
a second High Mass in which the hymns were generally 
sung in Latin by the Sisters of St. Joseph, Father Clement 
himself would go into the pulpit and preach in German, his 
attractive, winning manner gaining the hearts of his hearers 
in a most extraordinary manner. He chose the epistles as 
his text and explained them with such clearness and pre- 
cision as to dissipate every doubt. Sometimes, in order to 
rouse the attention of the audience, he would turn to one 
or others of the students who were present and ask them a 
question : but as he had always previously suggested an ans- 
wer, there was no fear of their failing or being ashamed to 
reply. This likewise doubled the attention of the students ; 
and he would reward them by promising them a remem- 
brance in his mass. Whilst F. Clement was preaching to 
the Germans F. Thaddeus said mass in a side Chapel for the 
Poles. The last solemn mass, unless a Bishop or some other 
Prelate were present, was always sung by F. Clement. And 
as many eminent singers both professional and amateur, 
offered their services, the music every day was excellent. 

At l / 2 3 the Services were renewed by a second sermon in 
German, followed by vespers (sung) and by exposition of 
the Blessed Sacrament. Then the Germans having gone out 
to make room for the Poles, Father Podgorski preached in 
their language on eternal truths, and that with such vigour 
as to fill his audience with a horror of vice and an admira- 
tion of all Christian virtues. Then followed the Yia Crucis 
or way of the Cross, which was said in German on Fesffvals 



40 His Apostolic Works in Warsaw. 

and in Polish on other days, ending with the Benediction 
of the Most Holy Sacrament. The day closed with a public 
examination of conscience and a recitation, with the people, 
of the acts of Faith, Hope, Charity and Contrition. But 
to strengthen their faith and piety still further, F. Clement 
started several Confraternities. One of them, which was 
specially for the young and included both boys and girls, 
was placed under the Patronage of St. Joseph. Clement drew 
up certain simple rules suited to their state and position ; 
and was rewarded by witnessing an extraordinary increase 
in consequence of piety and good conduct among its mem- 
bers. These Confraternities gladly joined in all the proces- 
sions on solemn feasts, such as the Assumption, the Patron- 
age of St. Joseph, the Feast of our Holy Redeemer, etc. On 
Corpus Christi or the Sunday after, the Procession went 
outside the church. Fifty children dressed in white and 
bearing torches followed, and on such days there was a 
General Communion of all the Members of the Confrater- 
nities. F. Clement multiplied himself on such occasions, 
preaching, singing High Mass, giving Holy Communion, 
regulating the processions and finally giving Benediction 
of the Blessed Sacrament. But it was specially on the Feast 
of Corpus Christi that St. Bennone was in all its glory. 
F. Clement himself superintended the lighting of the church 
and the disposal of the flowers, and he had enlisted the ser- 
vices and enthusiasm of all the ladies in Warsaw, so that 
they gladly contributed towards the expenses. A troop of 
children dressed as angels, spread flowers before the B. Sa- 
crament, while twelve priests incensed it and other children 
dressed as Cherubims marched on each side of the magni- 
ficent Baldachino (a present of the ladies which had cost 
upwards of six thousand Francs in gold) under which was 
borne the King of Glory. All the fathers dressed in beau- 
tiful chasubles, as in Rome, immediately preceded the 
Blessed Sacrament: and before the Procession, F. Clement 



Other Apostolic Labours in Poland. 4 1 

in German and F. Blumenauer in Polish made a little allo- 
cution to the people on the glories of the Festival. 

It would be difficult to describe the joy of F. Clement at 
thus seeing his most earnest wishes fulfilled. This church 
once so deserted now so overcrowded! he, beginning with 
one only companion, now surrounded with fervent priests 
and Religious of his own order! and the inhabitants of 
Warsaw, once so tepid and indifferent, now so zealous 
and filled with such holy enthusiasm ! ! O ! how good is God 
towards those whose heart is in the right place ! And how 
wonderfully were the humble aspirations of the poor Vienna 
baker, the poor Tivoli hermit, answered by the Divine Cle- 
mency of Him who moulds all human agencies according 
to His will! 



CHAPTER IV. 

Other Apostolic Labours in Polaxd. F. Clement's account 

OE THE LAMENTABLE STATE OF RELIGION IN THAT COUNTRY. 

A good number of Frenchmen had come to Warsaw in 
consequence of the war and the Revolution and these were 
as sheep without a shepherd till F. Clement undertook 
their care and sent them a preacher in their own language 
whom Providence, as we have seen, had sent to the Congre- 
gation as if on purpose for this work. 

The Prussian Protestants were his next care. They were 
attracted by the beautiful music at St. Bennone and also 
by Clement's preaching. Many came to him afterwards for 
a solution of their doubts and difficulties and were received 
into the Church. At last their numbers increased so much 
that the house was not large enough to hold them and F. 
Clement had to hire a large room outside for their in- 
struction. 

Even the Jews were moved to enquiring into the Doc- 



42 Other Apostolic Labours in Poland. 

trines of the Catholic Church and for this work F. Lenoir 
was appointed, as he was an excellent Hebrew Scholar and 
well versed in the Talmud. Many, in consequence, pe- 
titioned for the grace of Baptism and were received into the 
true Fold. 

In 17 96, the Redemptorist Fathers untertook the great 
church of the "Holy Cross in the Fields", which was much 
frequented by the people in the neighbourhood. The 
Prussian Government wished to give it up to the Pro- 
testants: so that the Archbishop hastened to make it over 
to the new Congregation with its revenues. As it was not 
far from St. Bennone the Fathers could live in community 
and only go there to say mass and administer the sacra- 
ments. Every year they likewise gave a great public retreat 
to the people in the Church of St. Andrew, at which a very 
large number of the faithful assisted. 

After the suppression of the Jesuits in Poland , missions 
had ceased altogether. This was a great anxiety to F. Cle- 
ment who had them much at heart; so that after many fer- 
vent prayers and great exertions, he obtained leave from the 
Prussian Government in 1801 to give them again under the 
name of r< 'Public Instructions", as the word "Mission" or "Retreat" 
sounded terrible in anti-Catholic ears. The result was that 
in that same year, three missions were given by the Fathers, 
one in Warsaw; one (in October) in the Provinces; and 
another in November at a place about 15 leagues from War- 
saw. F. Clement wrote on the 19 th of Decbr. 1801, speak- 
ing "of the extraordinary fruit of these missions, which 
exceeded all expectation". We will give an account of one 
of them. 

Father Thaddeus, five other missioners and one lay- 
brother started one day for the parish where they had 
been sent by order of the Bishop and under the authority of 
the senator, Count Lasocki. The Parish Priest, however, 
did not conceal his aversion to their proceedings: but the 



Other Apostolic Labours in Poland. 43 

missioners, trusting in the intercession of the Blessed 
Virgin, went calmly on, not doubting that her power would 
destroy the machinations of the enemy of souls. And so it 
happened; for after the first sermon, the Parish Priest 
hastened to the Missioners' House, threw himself at their feet 
and burst into tears. Then he confessed his previous hos- 
tility and implored their pardon, which the Fathers gave in- 
stantly, sending him home happy and consoled. From that 
moment all hearts were changed and the mission produced 
extraordinary fruits. The devil endeavoured, however, in a 
variety of ways to hinder the good done. On one occasion as 
the missioner was preparing the people for a General Com- 
munion, an extraordinary cry was heard, as of a child 
being strangled. Every one turned round to see where the 
child was, but there was not one in the church. After about 
half an hour, quiet was restored and the solemn act was 
reverently and devoutly concluded. Another time, the cry 
arose : "A woman with child has been crushed in the crowd !" 
and this being disproved, a fresh cry arose: "That the 
Church was in flames". And a dense smoke seemed to issue 
from the beams. But when the roof was examined, there 
was not a trace either of tire or smoke. By a merciful inter- 
position of Providence, no one was hurt, in spite of the 
panic and the great crowd ; and every one being reassured, 
the General Communion was made with extraordinary de- 
votion. At 3 o'clock of that same day, which was the Sunday 
after the 1 3 th of November, when they were keeping the Feast 
of St. Stanislas Kotska, the Congregation were consoled by 
a wonderful sight. The altar of St. Joseph seemed suddenly 
enveloped in a cloud and a vision of Our Lady appeared in 
the midst, bright with light and of heavenly sweetness. 
Not only the poor people, but Count Lasocki and the 
priests all witnessed this consoling apparition; and nothing 
broke the intense and silent admiration of the witnesses, 
save sighs and whispered invocations of the name of Mary. 



44 F. Clement's Account of the lamentable 

After about an hour, the beautiful vision disappeared, 
leaving an ineffable feeling of consolation in the hearts of 
the people. This mission lasted a whole month, and upwards 
of 11,000 persons received Holy Communion. Until the 
suppression of the Congregation, these missions were con- 
tinued. And so extraordinary was the effect they produced, 
that a Polish Canon, seventy years after the expulsion of 
the Redemptorists , attested that the good results of them 
were still visible in all the localities where they had been 
given and of which the tradition had been religiously pre- 
served in spite of the many subsequent revolutions. 

It may be easily imagined, however, that every one did 
not approve of Father Clement's proceedings and thought 
his zeal imprudent and excessive. The Superior General 
considered it right to make some observations to him on 
this subject which Clement answered as follows, (1799 to 
1800) : "Our works in this city have been singularly blessed 
by God. The Government not permitting formal missions in 
the city, we have undertaken in our church what may be 

called a perpetual mission If your Reverence could 

see with your own eyes the miserable state of religion in this 
depraved city, you would not wonder at the frequency of 
our sermons, but rather wish us to preach more. Nor must 
you fancy that we thereby weary our Congregation. It 
would be so in other countries: but here, the anxiety to 
hear the Word of God is ever increasing , in proportion as 
men realise more vividly the difficulty of saving their souls 
in the midst of such perils. The Bishops have their hands 
tied and do not dare act without the permission of the Poli- 
tical Council , which is composed of the scum of the earth, 
of men without any faith whatever, who remain quiet spec- 
tators of the gravest scandals and even favour and encourage 
them, provided only the taxes be paid and no fresh revo- 
lution breaks out. Only the other day, a religious threw off 
his habit and married, without even saying a syllable to his 



State of Religion in Poland. 45 

superior: two others soon followed his example; while a 
fourth has given the unheard-of scandal of becoming a Jew. 
All the laws of religion and morality are violated with im- 
punity and the corruption is universal .... But if the poor 
pastor cannot keep the wolf from his fold, at least his dogs 
can bark to give warning of the danger. This we are doing, 
with the help of God, and the numbers who crowd the 
church are incredible and increase daily. The greater pro- 
portion are of course , of the lower orders , but the nobles 
are now beginning to come likewise". 

In another letter of the 1 st of Oct. 1801 he writes again: 
"The fame of our instructions, preachings and catechisms has 
spread even to Moscow, and throughout Russia, even to 
Siberia. The fruits of this are incalculable. Not only the 
people of the town , but from all parts of the country and 
even from distant provinces, persons come for five, six or 
eight days, hear the word of God , receive the sacraments, 
and go back to their homes strengthened and comforted 
by God's grace" . . . Again he writes: "With the exception 
of the Missioners of St. Vincent of Paul, and certain Fran- 
ciscans, named "Recollects", the other priests in Warsaw only 
preach once a week and that in a way the people cannot 
understand. Certain Jansenists from France crept in some 
years ago and brought with them a species of rigorism, de- 
terring the people from coming to the sacraments . . . And 
this is the more unfortunate, because they have the largest 
parishes in the city. But after having assisted at our 
Missions two or three times, I am thankful to say they 
are beginning to give up their system and adopt ours." 

In the same strain, Monsg. Litta,* first Nunzio at Warsaw, 

* Lorenzo, Marquis Litta of Milano, was "born on the 23 rd of Feb. 1756. 
He was created Archbishop of Thebes by Pius VI: and in 1793 sent as 
Nunzio to Warsaw. In the midst of the fearful political struggles in that 
unhappy Country Litta showed extraordinary prudence and courage. With 
Kosciusko, he pleaded the cause of the innocent Bishop of Chelmawho had been 
condemned to death and would have saved the Bishops of Liefland and 



46 Lamentable State of Religion in Poland. 

and then at St. Petersburgh, writes to the Superior General 
(18 th of January 1800): "On my return to St. Petersburg, I 
passed by Warsaw, where I stayed more than a month. 
I found the House of the Redemptorists even more flourish- 
ing than before , with a constant increase of good works, a 
wonderful success in preaching and in the administration 
of the Sacraments and an extraordinary influx of people. 
Father Clement is the most apostolic man I have ever met, 
full of zeal for the glory of God and of charity for the sal- 
vation of souls. He works miracles by the grace of God. 
To give you an idea of his labours, I must tell you that the 
church is thronged day after day from five in the morning 
till late at night : and from morning till night, he is always 
hearing confessions, or preaching, or saying mass, or giving 
instructions, ending always with Benediction. They preach 
four times a day at St. Bennone — twice in Polish and 
twice in German — and each time the church is filled up to 
the very doors. I am not exaggerating ! It is an extraordinary 
sight and the great blessing is, that it seems entirely to have 
transformed the habits of the people. Perhaps your Rev- 
erence may think what they do is more than enough? But 
you would not think so if you saw the enormous needs of 
this poor country, where no one else, seems to think of 
labouring in our Lord's Vineyard. I should not dare advise 
those good and holy Fathers to leave off one single work, 

Wilna, if he had had notice in time of their sad fate. The Polish Kingdom 
being destroyed, he was sent as Ambassador to Moscow to assist at the 
Coronation of Paul I. Then he was created Nunzio at St. Petersburg 
where he provided for the wants of the Catholics there who formed 6 
dioceses of the Latin rite and 3 of the United Greek. He was in Venice 
at the time of the Conclave in March 1800: and was made Cardinal by 
Pius VII. the next year. Driven from Rome, he was imprisoned in va- 
rious towns of France, till he returned in triumph to Rome with the Pope, 
in May 1814. He was then first made Prefect of the Propaganda and 
afterwards Cardinal Vicar. He died in 1820 during a Pastoral Visita- 
tion in the Sabina. Six weeks before, Father Clement had»passed to 
a better life, having always kept up a correspondence with him, of which 
unhappily, no trace can be found. 



His Zeal for the Diffusion of good Books. 47 

seeing that each brings forth such wonderful fruit : I should 
fear to oppose myself to the will of God and spoil His 
work. If you could only obtain in Germany a Seminary 
such as F. Hofbauer so earnestly desires, there is no doubt 
that the good done in the North would be even greater". 
Such an opinion from such an authority could not fail to 
carry weight. 

CHAPTER V. 

His indefatigtjable Zeal for the diffusion of good books, 

AND ESPECIALLY OF THE WORKS OF St. AlPHONSUS. 

AMONG its other miseries, Poland, at the time of which 
we are writing, was inundated with bad books. Every im- 
pious or immoral publication in France or Germany was, 
either in the original or in translations, disseminated through- 
out the country: and unfortunately to console themselves 
for the ruin of their country, the Poles took pleasure in these 
readings which corrupted their morals while it destroyed 
their faith. 

But Clement, as usual, had a remedy for the evil. First, 
he preached vigorously against the pernicious maxims and 
principles of the works in question, exposing their sophisms, 
and putting his hearers on their guard against them. Next, 
he determined to provide good substitutes for these bad 
books, and founded a Congregation called "Mariana", whose 
members were employed mainly in distributing innocent 
and yet amusing publications.* Then to revive the spirit of 
Christian piety among his flock, he wisely determined to place 

* The venerable superior of the Salesians in Kaminiek, Maria Cecilia 
di Cholomiewska, was driven by the Russian Police from her Convent 
and had to take refuge in Lemberg. She wrote an account of this work 
of F. Clement's in Warsaw, which was incorporated among the papers 
employed in the cause of his beatification. She was born in 1786 and 
was therefore 93 years old, but her memory was still fresh. She died 
in 1881. 



48 His Zeal for the Diffusion of good Boohs. 

in their hands the works of St. Alphonsus. A good many of 
these works had already been translated into German. 

In 1757, a Jesuit Father had translated his "Visits to the 
Blessed Sacrament" and two years later his "Practice of the 
Love of Jesus Christ". Another Jesuit, F. Ignatius Neubauer, 
translated "The Truth of Faith" and says in his preface : "That 
Bishop Liguori was one of those learned writers whom God 
had specially raised up to defend the faith." Father Hyper, 
a Benedictine of Wessobrun in the Diocese of Augsburgh, had 
likewise translated from his work on "Nuns", all that was 
most useful for pious Christians: while a secular priest of 
the same diocese, Peter Obladen, had reproduced in Ger- 
man a quantity of extracts from the Bishop's works on the 
Priesthood. Father Clement employed one of his Reli- 
gious, F. Thaddeus Hiibl, to make a fresh translation of his 
"Visit to the Blessed Sacrament", and "Love of Souls" which he 
distributed gratuitously; while, for the Poles, he employed 
F. Podgorski, in a like manner : and a Parish priest, Domi- 
nic Waluszewicz, at the same time translated St. Alphonsus' 
Sermons for the benefit of the Clergy. Great was Clement's 
joy when the Prince Bishop of Plok, Michael Poniatowski, 
(brother of King Stanislas and Primate of Gnesen) , wrote a 
pastoral, strongly recommending the moral theology of St. 
Alphonsus; which gave double weight to the exhortations 
of the humble Redemptorist. 

There was another person who greatly assisted F. Clement 
in propagating the works of his Founder, and that was 
Father Joseph Albert Diesbach, of the suppressed Society 
of Jesus and Clement's intimate friend, of whom we will 
now say a few words. Diesbach was the son of a noble 
family in Berne, of a Calvinist Sect and was born on the 
1 5 th of Febr. 1732. At 1 5. he entered the service of the King 
of Sardinia and soon obtained the rank of captain in a Swiss 
Regiment, of which his uncle, the Count of Diesbach, was 
the Commanding Officer. 



The History of Father Diesbach. 49 

Certain Catholic books having fallen into his hands, he 
discovered the errors of Calvinism which he soon after ab- 
jured in the Jesuit College of Turin. Very soon after, he 
was summoned to the Court of King Charles Emanuel, to 
instruct his son Victor Amedeus II. in the art of war. About 
that time he married : but on the death of his young wife, 
he made up his mind to join the Society of Jesus which he 
entered in 1759 and soon distinguished himself by his zeal 
and great ability in preaching. It was his business to in- 
struct Princess Elisabeth of Wiirtemberg in the Catholic 
Faith, who afterwards became the wife of the Emperor 
Francis : and also to warn Princess Charlotte, daughter of 
Victor Emanuel, against the errors of Protestantism, as she 
was betrothed to the King of Saxony. Among his published 
letters, there is an important one addressed to Leopold, 
when he was called from Tuscany to fill the Austrian throne, 
which the death of Joseph the 2 nd had left vacant. In this 
letter he shows the enormous harm arising to the Church 
from secret societies and false philosophies and the mise- 
rable state to which the Empire was reduced by the ab- 
surd pretensions of his predecessor, Joseph II. Then he 
shows the way in which the evil may be remedied and ends 
with these frank words : "When this present life shall have 
disappeared like a flash of lightening before you and me; 
when the irresistible flight of time shall have brought us 
face to face with eternity; when, in the sight of God, Ave 
shall witness with stupefaction a new order of things, such 
as our dim but Divine Faith has darkly shown us here, these 
great and eternal Truths will exist for ever and will shine 
in the brightness of the only True Light. Then, shall we 
clearly see the perishable nature of all the goods of this 
world and the supreme majesty of God: the ineffable and 
eternal rewards of the good and the never ending torments 
of the wicked. Then we shall understand that there is no- 
thing to be desired- by a man save this: to be a living and 

4 



50 His Zeal for the Diffusion of good Boohs. 

faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ, the sole de- 
pository of Divine Authority and the only power which can 
bind or loose human souls for all eternity. Therefore, the 
only true wisdom, O! King Leopold, consists in this: to 
honor this truth and to hold it in the highest esteem far 
above all earthly considerations. After all, what will it profit 
a man if he should gain the whole world and lose his own 
soul?" 

Clement, writing of his friend Diesbach, says : " That in 
Switzerland he had converted innumerable souls, Walden- 
sians, Calvinists, Zwinglians and others. And that he was 
universally called "The Apostle of the Alps". He was in- 
timately acquainted with the venerable Alphonsus Liguori 
and held him in the highest veneration. After the suppres- 
sion of the Society, he continued his missionary labourers 
as long as his corporal strength remained. He was as much 
distinguished for his learning as for his eminent virtue. 
Often, in my presence, I have heard him declare, that, after 
the suppression of the Jesuits, God had raised up Alphon- 
sus, that he might he as an invincible wall against the ene- 
mies of the Church, to defend the purity of doctrine and the 
rights of the Holy See." — F. Tannoia also writes of Dies- 
bach : "That he had contributed more than any one to make 
the theology of St. Alphonsus well known in Switzerland, 
France and Germany. He especially prized his ascetic works, 
considering them as filled with the spirit of God. 

He distributed them in every direction, had them trans- 
lated into several languages and recommended them every 
where as promoting true Christian piety among the People." 

Diesbach had the glory of suffering martyrdom for our 
Lord's sake; for being employed at Court as Tutor to the Em- 
peror Leopold's sons, certain evil disposed persons, dreading 
his authority, determined to get rid of him. They conse- 
quently hired certain ruffians, who waylaid and beat him so 
severely that he died a few days after in the ordour of Sane- 



New Mission in Courland. 5 1 

tity. i. e. on the 24 th of Decbr. 1798. He was buried in the 
Cemetery of Maria-Enzersdorf and Father Clement on his 
return to Vienna hastened to visit his tomb and earnestly 
wished himself to he buried by his side, as appears in the 
process of his cause. Another Jesuit F. Louis Virginio, 
Rector of the Italian Church in Vienna, was equally an- 
xious to promote the study of the works of St. Alphonsus. 
Virginio was for many years Clement's constant correspon- 
dent and the medium for his receiving communications from 
Rome and Naples. 

CHAPTER VI. 

The Redemptohists in Courland ajud in other Stations of 

Poland . 

Troni 1795 to 1807/ 

WE may remember that Father Clement had been destined 
for Courland by the S. Congregation of Propaganda, when he 
was stopped at Warsaw by the orders of the Nunzio and the 
King. The Bishop of Livonia most earnestly desired the 
advent of the Redemptorists ; but F. Clement was unable to 
send any the first few years owing to the small number of 
his Religious. He wrote on the 29 th of Decbr. 1794: "For 
more than five years the Bishop goes on imploring me to 
send some Fathers to Mietau in Courland. After the sup- 
pression of the Jesuits, who had a large establishment there, 
there was only one Catholic church left and one solitary 
priest, in the midst of that vast protestant and schismatic 
population: and yet the Catholics are very numerous! There 
would, therefore, be a vast field for work: but I fear to ad- 
vance further north. The Parish Priest, who is also Vicar 
General, seems well-disposed towards us, and has set aside 
50 Hungarian sequins for the expenses of the journey. But 
I have only two very young Fathers, whom I should send 
very unwillingly a hundred miles away from me! I would 



52 From 1795 to 1807. 

rather establish a novitiate in Germany and when France 
becomes quieter, I should like to establish a House there, 
where I have many friends who are very anxious to see the 
Redemptorists settled in France." 

A little later, however, he received a letter from Gold- 
berger, the zealous parish Priest of Mietau, imploring him 
to reconsider his decision, and not to let him die without 
having this consolation, while offering to procure the necessary 
passports from St. Petersburg for his Fathers. 

This letter touched F. Clement very much, and he sub- 
mitted it to the Father General. He adds : "I leave the de- 
cision in your Reverence's hands. It cannot be denied that 
there is a vast field for work for the glory of God and the 
good of souls. In the single town of Mietau, there are 7000 
Catholics, and 42 Catholic parishes in the province. The 
faithful have scarcely any means of obtaining the Sacra- 
ments; and the priest has to travel 15 or 20 miles to ad- 
minister the sick and dying. Since the suppression of the 
Jesuits there is no Catholic school. The only thing which 
makes me hesitate is, that I must send experienced Fathers 
from here and I have no one to replace them. The Pri- 
mate of Poland , who lately died in the most holy disposi- 
tions, had already signed a Letter of recommendation to the 
Duke of Courland : and the Nunzio has given us, in writ- 
ing, all the faculties and privileges which can be assigned 
to missionaries in Protestant Countries. The people of this 
Country are besides well disposed to accept the Truth. That 
good Parish Priest, who for 40 years, has laboured single- 
handed in this Vineyard, says that the heretics are so ripe 
for conversion that in one day more than a hundred abjured 
their errors. I, therefore, implore your Reverence to tell me 
without delay what you think will be best before God. And 
I will try with all my might to carry out ivhatever proposal you may 
devise for the promotion of God's glory ', the propagation of Holy 
Church, and the welfare of so many precious soids." 



From 1795 to 1807. 53 

On the 1 st of iipril 1795 Clement received the answer from 
the Father General approving of the proposed new Mission 
and desiring him to send the Fathers without delay. Cle- 
ment was delighted : "for", he exclaimed, "the will of God 
in this matter is clear as the noonday sun and it would be 
a great sin to resist any longer." 

His only despair was, the immense difficulty of finding 
fresh subjects for the missions. In Poland, Catholic studies 
had so terribly declined that no one would choose the eccle- 
siastical state. The young men were ruined in the atheist 
Colleges and the clergy were looked down upon by the ma- 
jority of the students. 

Hence Clement's great anxiety to establish a noviciate 
in Germany, where there was a better chance of vocations. 
As to the Fathers to be sent to Mietau, Clement writes: "I 
am sending Father John Rudolph whose solid virtue and 
prudence I have known for 7 years, and with him, F. Joseph 
Wichert, whom the Nunzio ordained priest, and the Polish 
Cleric Kaminski." On the 15 th of Septbr. 1795 he writes 
from Prague: "I have very consoling letters from F. Ru- 
dolph. He found the people in a state of gross ignorance 
even of the elementary truths necessary to salvation: but 
the Fathers have won their confidence and affection already: 
and even from distant provinces, protestants hasten to bring 
them their sick that they may lay their hands upon them 
and recommend them to our Lord. 

In the same way they bring their children to them for 
instruction. The Catholic school opened by them has already 
done immense good. Four of the children have already 
become Catholic and many adults have been instructed and 
received into the Church. They have also baptised a Pagan 
woman from Great Tartary .... altogether the mission is 
already bearing fruit." His only anxiety, later on, was to 
send more labourers into this new vineyard, for the three 
missioners were overwhelmed with the daily increasing 



54 From 1795 to 1801 . 

work. Then came a fresh, difficulty. In July 1 799 he writes : 
"For more than a year we have no news from our dear Fa- 
thers at Mietau. The Russian Government has absolutely 
forbidden all correspondence from without ; so that we can 
get no news either directly or indirectly." 

Nevertheless F. Clement at the beginning of this century, 
accepted two other missions, one in Lutkowa, the other in 
Radzumin. About one of these he writes in June 1803: 

"For more than a year, the Protestant President of the 
Warsaw Government has not left a stone unturned to induce 
me to accept the house which he has enlarged and endowed 
for our missioners. But I did not dare accept it, fearing to 
injure St. Bennone by taking away workmen who are in- 
dispensable to that congregation. Not being able to persuade 
me, he had recourse to the Archbishop, to force me to yield. 
He sent for me and I exposed very frankly to his Grace the 
reasons for my refusal. I thought I had won the battle ; when 
all of a sudden, from the Aulic Chamber, came an intima- 
tion to the Archbishop to force me to accept this new mis- 
sion immediately : and that by reason of the supreme author- 
ity existing in the Kingdom of Prussia over all clergy whe- 
ther secular or regular. And this order was to be obeyed 
within three months ! ! Consequently, very much against my 
will, I was compelled to send three Fathers and one laybro- 
ther to this mission, where they have been ever since Ja- 
nuary and where their labours have been crowned with sin- 
gular success. Before our arrival, those poor people had not 
seen a priest for eight months. They are so ignorant that 
they do not know the most elementary doctrines of our holy 
Faith : but they are Catholics at heart, detesting Lutherans 
and Jews as they would the plague. I have given them F. 
Adalbert Schroter as Superior. So the poor House of St. 
Bennone has lost three priests and one laybrother and we 
are reduced to 15 Religious with a few clerical students 
and laybrothers." 



F. Clement propagates the Congregation in Germany. 55 

CHAPTER VII. 

The incessant anxiety of F. Clement to propagate the Con- 
gregation in Germany. His Pilgrimage to Prague. 1795. 

DIVINE Providence had led F. Clement into Poland to 
help, in the first instance, the neglected German Catholics 
there. But not only in Warsaw but in all the large Polish 
cities, multitudes of Germans were collected, in whose hands 
was, in reality, all the commerce and trade of the country : 
but they, having no priests who could speak to them in 
their own language, by degrees gave up their religion, 
ceased to frequent the Sacraments and thousands of them, 
in consequence, perished miserably. 

To meet this great need, F. Clement set his heart on open- 
ing a House in Germany for the training of German no- 
vices. 

The work in Warsaw was so heavy and overpowering that 
it was almost impossible to cultivate properly the spirit of 
the noviciate, for even the young students were obliged to 
take their part : and could not be educated in that quiet and 
recollection which the rule justly exacted^ 

We have seen how F. Clement, when his house was in 
such peril from the burning of the neighbouring suburb, 
promised a pilgrimage to Prague if they were spared. This 
vow he now determined to fulfil and accordingly started 
with F. Thaddeus on the 31 st of August 1 795. They arrived 
in Prague on the 1 4 th of Sept, and for nine days satisfied 
their devotion over the Tomb of this glorious martyr* to- 
Avards whom F. Clement had a special veneration. 

"When our pilgrimage is over", wrote Clement, "we shall 
go to Constance, where there is a question of founding a 
new House which is earnestly desired by the Nunzio. God 
who is wonderful in his Avorks, has disposed all things in an 

* St. John Nepomucen. 



56 F. Clement's Pilgrimage to Prague. 

admirable manner. When, on the Saturday after the Feast 
of the Assumption, I was preparing to say mass, a letter 
was put into my hands which I did not open till after I had 
celebrated. This was from the Provost of the College at 
Lindau, on the Lake of Constance, who is most anxious that 
a House of our Congregation should be established there. 
Being at Prague, I am now halfway and please God, shall 
accomplish the rest of the journey, so as to confer with him 
as to the best means to be adopted. I have never seen him 
nor does he know anything about us. He only heard once 
of our Institute from a lady who had been to confession 
to me at Warsaw before going to Lindau. The Nunzio sees 
clearly in all this the hand of God and so has given me 
letters not only for the Provost but for the Vicar General 
at Constance. I will write later about the progress of this 
affair." 

After leaving Constance he returned by Znaim in Mora- 
via, from whence he writes to his Superior General as follows. 
"Finding myself in Vienna, I was ordered by the Nunzio to 
visit the Bishop of St. Hyppolitus who offered us a House 
and said that he wished all his clergy to make the spiritual 
exercises in a house of our order in his Diocese : and being 
also Vicar General of the army he wished to found in the 
same house a Seminary for the preparation of good military 
Chaplains. But as long as the Emperor's decrees are in force, 
which compel the Religious orders to send all their students 
to the University, we cannot accept any foundation in the 
imperial dominions ; for the education given to the students 
in these Universities is of the most pernicious character. 
We must, therefore, put off this affair to better times/' 

A little later, it appears he was blamed for being so will- 
ing to make new foundations by his superiors and he justifies 
himself as follows : "I have never sought for fresh Houses : 
but I did not like to refuse those offered me by persons 
hitherto unknown without submitting the proposal to the 



F. Clement propagates the Congregation in Germany. 57 

Superior General and awaiting his decision. A House was 
offered me in Switzerland and in spite of my continual re- 
fusal, a deputation arrived at Warsaw hoping to obtain by 
a personal interview what letters had failed to do. When 
they left, I gave them hopes that some day their wishes 
may be realised. I say frankly that those who do not know 
the condition of the North cannot form an idea of the enor- 
mous necessity which exists for the opening of a noviciate 
to form good subjects for the existing Houses. Do you not 
think it is a clear sign of the Divine will that at the very 
time that convents and monasteries are being everywhere 
destroyed and suppressed we are continually receiving, even 
from Protestants, fresh offers for new foundations? If we 
refuse them all, perhaps they will cease to be offered to us. 
I do not think we should accept these offers at once : but 
only when we have enough trained subjects. But even if we 
were to seek for fresh houses, could we be blamed? We 
should be only showing as much zeal for saving souls as the 
enemies of religion have for ruining them." 

The holy Superior made another journey to Germany and 
Switzerland, but the letters are unhappily lost in the con- 
tinual wars and disturbances of the period. We only know 
that in July 1797 he was at Nicolsburg near Passwitz and 
said mass in the Church of the Scolopian Fathers, as appears 
in the catalogue of the celebrants. The Apostolic Nunzio, 
Monsg. Litta, wrote on the ll th of Jan. 1800, "that F. Cle- 
ment' s proj ect of opening a House in Switzerland must be post- 
poned on account of the invasion of the French army : but 
that there was a hope of a House in the German Empire on 
a property of Baron Beroldingens, whose brother was in 
Vienna." This hope, however, was not realised. 

It was a moment of revolution and general war, and Re- 
ligious Houses fare badly under such circumstances. The 
worst effects of the revolution at that moment were felt in 
Switzerland. 



58 F. Clement propagates the Congregation in Germany. 

The Catholic Cantons were overwhelened with French 
emigrants who lived mainly on charity. The Nimzio dis- 
tributed all his money amongst them and whatever he 
could get from the sale of his furniture. The revolution 
went on, especially in the Protestant Cantons, until the 
French Army invaded Switzerland, destroyed its independ- 
ence and made the Nunzio prisoner in Lucerne, finally 
conducting him beyond the frontier. 

Austria was scarcely in a better condition. After an un- 
happy war, she was compelled on the i8 th of April 1797, to 
sign the preliminaries of peace at Leoben; and on the 17 th 
of October, at Campo Formio, to subscribe to the hard con- 
ditions imposed by General Bonaparte. Even this humilia- 
tion did not induce the Emperor to change a system of 
Government which was so disastrous for the Church. And 
if it did not come to an extreme, it was mainly owing to the 
Faith engrained in the hearts of the people. 

F. Clement not having succeeded in founding a house for 
his novices outside the frontiers of Poland, resolved at least 
to bring some youths from Znaim and Tasswitz with the 
hope of forming them into subjects at Warsaw. There was 
a certain Brunner, who was afterwards at Vienna, who had 
been carried by Clement to Warsaw with two others for 
this purpose, but unfortunately he did not remember the 
date of his journey. Probably however it was in 1792, as a 
paper was found stating that F. Clement had been impri- 
soned in Cracow in the Dominican Convent for having taken 
these two Austrian boys without the consent of the Govern- 
ment. It seems that a Government Official carried off 
the boys, who could only see F. Clement in the tribune of 
the church. 

Clement soon after escaped from Cracow and returned to 
Warsaw : but he had managed to keep three lads from Tass- 
witz. One was his nephew, Francis Hofbauer, the son of his 
brother Lawrence : the 2 nd was also a nephew, being the son 



F. Clement propagates the Congregation in Germany. 59 

of his sister Barbara, and a boy named Knapp. But he was 
as last compelled by order of the Government to send home 
these boys also, keeping only little Francis, who became 
afterwards a zealous priest in the Congregation. 

After the third division of Poland, Warsaw fell into 
the hands of the King of Prussia, and the Redemptorist 
Fathers had to swear allegiance to him on the 7 th of July 
1796. At first, it was hoped that the change would be of 
benefit to the Congregation, because being especially for the 
Germans and preaching mainly in that language, the Prus- 
sians frequented St. Bennone in preference to all other 
churches. But these benevolent sentiments did not last long. 
Very soon, the Prussians began a steady persecution of the 
religious orders, if not with fire and sword, at least with 
Laws and Decrees which were equally disastrous. Father 
Clement wrote on the 1 st of October 1801 to F. Tannoia: 
"Pray earnestly for us and ask all the other Fathers in Italy 
to do so also and recommend our poor Congregation to the 
mercy of God, because we are in a state of fearful anxiety. 
The Government under which we now live is possessed with 
the spirit of unbelief and has begun to persecute the clergy 
in every possible manner. It is true that the Catholic Faith 
is not directly prohibited : but they have so organised matters 
that unless some help comes from God, it will be speedily 
extinguished. The first thing the Government has ordered 
is, that under no pretext shall any ecclesiastic dare refer 
any matter to the Pope unless through the medium of the 
minister. All the clergy, whether regular or secular, are for- 
bidden to hold any communication with their Superiors if 
abroad. No religious Congregation can accept any novices 
without the hene-placito of the Government, and if not nobles, 
they must likewise obtain from the Commandant of their 
province, an exemption from the enforced military conscrip- 
tion. It is virtually a prohibition to receive novices, and the 
result is, that except the missioners of St. Vincent of Paul, 



60 F. Clement propagates the Congregation in Germany. 

all the other Religious Houses remain without novices and 
we have only two. Until now, we and they had leave to 
accept novices : but the conditions are such as to make the 
permission a dead letter. The following are the required 
conditions. The candidate must have completed his 24 th year, 
must wear a secular habit during his noviciate, and then 
submit to an examination by Protestants, chosen by the Go- 
vernment, both before and after the year's noviciate. These 
examinations are simply attempts to detach young men from 
following their vocations. Even after this, they must present 
fresh petitions to the Government for leave to make their 
profession. It is only after having gone through all these 
vexatious conditions thas a man is permitted to take the 
religious habit and make his vows. 

This new decree makes it, therefore, almost impossible for 
any one to follow the Evangelical Counsels. When it was 
brought to us, we answered in writing : "That without the 
authority of our Superiors we could not assent to its con- 
tents, as it was contrary to the practice of the Church whe- 
ther Latin or Greek." I believe the Superiors of the other 
orders have given an answer in the same terms. 

We are living now as sad spectators of the hard and cruel 
oppression of the Church of God. How happy are you, be- 
loved brethren, who have a King who, being a good Ca- 
tholic, knows how to defend his clergy! As for ourselves, to 
whom can we look for redress? 

We sigh under an authority which is all powerful. The 
Government has formed what may be termed an Ecclesias- 
tical Council: but among the Councillors there is not one 
single Catholic : as for the President, no one knows what he 
is. He is neither Lutheran, nor Calvinist, nor a follower of 
Zwinglin's, not even a Christian. Hence he is the bitterest 
enemy of Convents and of all Religious Order. This is the 
man who dares to give orders to Bishops and to all the 
Clergy, and who is to decide all ecclesiastical controversies ! 



His Anxiety for higher Education. 61 

How infamously the Church is treated may he seen by this 
fact: i. e. that the President of this ecclesiastical council, 
has likewise two other offices: one to watch over the Jews, 
and the other, the public prostitutes, and they are all three 
bracketed together! 

Their behaviour towards the Priesthood is equally scan- 
dalous. The city is gorged with atheists who occupy all 
important offices : and it is only by the great mercy of God 
thas the lower classes are not entirely perverted, but per- 
severe in well-doing and listen eagerly to the preaching of 
that Divine Word which we endeavour to make as practical 
as possible. I tell you all this hoping that the knowledge of 
our sad position will make your prayers for us to the throne 
of God more fervent and constant." 

It is certainly wonderful how, under these sad circum- 
stances, the House as St. Bennone could be maintained in 
so flourishing a condition. It was mainly thanks to the extra- 
ordinary prudence, moderation and patience of F.Hofbauer. 
But he foresaw the coming ruin of the Congregation in Po- 
land, and therefore was more than ever bent on a new foun- 
dation in Germany or Switzerland; so as to be able to form 
students who should eventually take the place of those who 
were sinking under their apostolic labours; and have them 
ready to go to any place to which Providence might call 
them. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

HlS ANXIETY FOB HIGHER EDUCATION. 

THE work in Warsaw Avhich suffered most from the des- 
potic ordinances of the Prussian Government, was the col- 
lege which had produced such abundant fruits and which 
had been opened close to the church of St. Bennone. The 
Redemptorist Fathers are forbidden by their rule to under- 



62 His Anxiety for higher Education. 

take the scientific instruction of youth and consequently 
cannot found or direct any distinctly Educational Institute. 
Their holy founder made this provision with a view to con- 
fine the occupation of his Religious to the work of giving 
missions, so that they might not be distracted from this their 
main object: and all the more because there were so many 
other Religious orders who had -devoted themselves to the 
education of youth. But after the suppression of the Society 
of Jesus, and other religious orders, Pius VI. considered it 
advisable to dispense the Redemptorists from this rule and 
gave leave to the Father General Francesco di Paolo, to 
establish colleges, when required, in the houses of his order. 

If the needs of Italy justified this change, still more ne- 
cessary was it in the north: so F. Clement began one in 
Warsaw and afterwards in Germany. His first object was to 
form good and learned members for the Congregation : but 
the public were equal gainers by the establishment of this 
college, every one having full right to choose the state of 
life he preferred; so that excellent Secular Priests and equally 
good laymen were sent out of it.* Besides secular learning, 
the students (as writes F. Tannoia) received admirable in- 
struction in all the branches of Theology; they were like- 
wise practised in preaching, and carefully initiated in the 
forms necessary for the administration of the Sacraments. 

The care thus bestowed was so great that Monsg. Litta 
[the Polish Nuncio) wrote to F. Paola as follows: "The 
Bishops assert that the Redemptorist students are better in- 
structed than any others and always pass first in examina- 
tions for ordination." 

Pius VI. finding the extreme poverty to which this Semi- 
nary was reduced in 1791, assigned them 100 Scudi annu- 
ally from the Propaganda and in giving it, made use of 

* In 1877 the Bishop of Varmia told the Author "that from F. Clement's 
Seminary had come some of his "best priests, who had done great works 
in his Diocese." 



His Anxiety for higher Education. 63 

these words : " We see that in these youths the zeal of their holy 
Founder has been infused". 

Almost all the students received by F. Clement were so 
poor that they could not defray the costs of their mainte- 
nance. But he never would give this fact a moment's con- 
sideration, being fully persuaded that if this work were in 
accordance with God's will, He would provide what was 
necessary for their support. During the first years, F. 
Clement taught theology himself: later on, he charged F. 
Passerat with this duty. He chose the most learned and ca- 
pable of the Fathers as Professors and sent to Rome for all 
the best books which could be found for their respective 
studies. To encourage the students in every possible way, 
he would show them the most paternal affection, assisting 
them in their studies and showing the keenest interest in 
their progress. To amuse them he would often tell them 
stories of his own youth and take them expeditions into the 
country; while to reward their diligence, he would invent 
a variety of prizes, suited to the taste of each. This College 
for some time did not give umbrage to the Government, who 
looked upoif it with a favourable eye. But when the anti- 
Christian changes were made in the administration, all F. 
Clement's plans and objects were destroyed. In addition to 
what we have before mentioned regarding novices, all the 
students had to pass a Government exanimation ; or if they 
failed to do so, were mulcted of a hundred Thalers. And 
what was worse than all, the books ordered by the Govern- 
ment for the use of the public schools were full of hostile 
passages against the Church and against Religion, while the 
Professors and the Government inspectors were frequently 
Apostate Priests, or men of scandalous lives. It was this 
especially which gave a death blow to F. Clement's College; 
and who can tell how great was his sorrow and mortifica- 
tion at the destruction of a work on which he had built his 
fondest hopes? 



64 T/ie State of the Ohurch in Germany. 

Nevertheless, his generous soul would not yield : if beaten 
in one battle, he would instantly begin again to fight in a 
fresh field. 

Hence his proposal to found a Seminary for his young 
students at Rome; which was only not carried out owing to 
the fears of the Father General : fears which were but too 
soon justified by the Pope, Pius VII., being carried to 
France, as a prisoner, while the Roman States were incor- 
porated into the French Empire. But what Italy could 
not supply, F. Clement found in Germany and this time 
with complete success. But in order that our readers may 
form a correct idea of this apostolic work, we will say a few 
words of the religious state of Germany at that period. 



CHAPTER IX. 

The State of the Church in Germany at the end of the 

18th century and the beginning of the 19th. Who were 

Dalberg and Wessenburg. 

* 

AT the close of the 1 8 th century the Church in Germany 
was in a pitiable state. If a certain number of men still 
practiced their religion and lived as good Catholics, if a few 
priests were fervent and by word and deed endeavoured to 
lead their people in right ways , these were but a poor mi- 
nority who could not influence the multitudes who had 
fallen away from the Faith. 

The bad seed sown by the Jansenists and other heretics 
had borne abundant fruit, and the advent of Joseph 2 nd to 
the throne fostered their poisonous machinations. If we 
would characterise the malady in men's souls we should say 
that 1 st all idea of the Church of God had been dispelled in 
their minds, and 2 nd > T a profound disgust for all exercises of 
Catholic piety had replaced their former fervour. 



The State of the Church in Germany. 65 

Hence the cry against the pretended usurpations of the 
pope, and hence also the contempt and ridicule shown 
towards the salutary devotion of the Sacred Heart. Even the 
priests, many of whom were members of secret societies, 
fought against the Church, desiring to see it united and sub- 
ject to the state, an incubus which for a long while oppressed 
the true Church in Germany. 

In the year 1786 when, in Italy, Ricci, Bishop of Pistoia, 
held the famous Jansenist synod condemned by Pius VI. in 
his Bull Auctoremfidei, the three principal ecclesiastical elec- 
tors, namely, the Archbishops of Cologne, Mayence and 
Treves as also the Archbishop of Salzburg, endorsed the Schis- 
matical Articles called of Ems, which all rested on the Doc- 
trines of Febronius and were worthy of the most declared 
enemies of the Holy See. 

The Prince Elector of Cologne at that time was the 
Archduke Maximilian of Austria, brother of the Emperor 
Joseph II : of Treves Clement Wenceslaus, Prince of Sa- 
xony, formerly a Marshall in the xlustrian army: and of 
Mayence Baron Erthal. These three electors were at 
that time the only Archbishops in the German Empire, 
but subject to them were many other Bishops and Prelates. 
Now, what they agreeed upon in the Ems convention was as 
follows : 

1 . That Christ had given to the Apostles and to their suc- 
cessors, the Bishops, an unlimited power to lose and bind 
persons, whatever might be the circumstances of their 
case, without reference to the Pope. 

2. All rights conceded to Religious Orders, unless recognised 
and approved of by the Emperor, were to be abolished : 
nor could the said religious be permitted to receive orders 
from or depend on foreign Superiors. 

3. It must rest with the Bishops to give dispensations in all 
cases hitherto reserved for the Holy See, and this even 
in cases of solemn vows. And no such vows were to be 



66 The State of the Church in Germany. 

considered valid unless made by men after the age of 25 
and by women after 40 years of age. 

4. It was to be no longer permitted to ask at Rome for 
faculties colled quinquennali , and whatever dispensations 
were granted by Rome would be inyalid unless granted 
by the Bishop also. 

5. No Pontifical Bulls would be considered as obligatory 
unless first accepted by the respective Bishops. 

6. Finally— the Oath sworn to the Pope by the Bishops was 
to be done away with: and if the Pope refused to con- 
firm the nomination of any of the Bishops, they would 
find, in the ancient discipline of the Church, means to 
preserve their offices under the Emperor's protection 
alone. 

These and other similar clauses were contained in the 
famous declaration of Ems, which was forwarded to Joseph II. 
together with a letter full of insults to the Holy See. But 
Archbishop Colloredo of Salzburg considering even this not 
sufficiently violent against the Pope, added 2 1 more articles 
of a similar nature and sent them to the Emperor. But even 
he was startled at their violence and did not approve of them. 
It is not necessary to state with what energy the Pope 
rose against these schismatical proceedings. And when he 
found that they ceased to apply to the Holy See for the 
Faculty called quinquennali. and gave dispensations on their 
own private authority in reserved cases, Pius VI. ordered 
Pacca, his Nunzio at Cologne, to signify in all the Parishes 
subject to the three Bishop Electors, that any marriages con- 
tracted under such impediments without the dispensation 
of the Holy See, would be considered invalid. The Prince 
Electors were furious at this circular, which the Nunzio im- 
mediately put forth, and the Archbishop of Cologne remon- 
strated upon the subject with the brother of Joseph II. and 
with the Pope himself. But Pius VI. replied that the Nunzio 
had acted by his orders, and that the decisions of the three 



The State of the Church in Germany. 67 

Archbishops were contrary to the Councils and to the uni- 
versal practice of the Church. On hearing this, the Arch- 
bishops of Treves and Mayence withdrew from the schisma- 
tical league and appealed to the Holy See again for the 
faculty quinquennali. But the Archbishops of Cologne 
and Salzburg so far from making any attempt at submis- 
sion, carried their accusations against the Nunzio to the 
Diet of Ratisbon, and so provoked a Memorandum from the 
Holy See. 

But the hand of God did not fail to fall heavily on the 
heads of these schismatics. The Emperor reaped the fruit 
of his usurpations in a revolt which deprived him of the 
Low Countries, and learnt too late that obedience to the 
Church is the foundation of the obedience due to the civil 
authority, and that if that be destroyed, together with 
the principle of submission to authority, there will be no 
fidelity from subjects to their Princes. JosephlL, overwhelm- 
ed with every kind of misfortune, thus closed his mortal 
career. 

The Elector Princes were despoiled of all their possessions 
and Electoral Dignities by the French war: while their 
principalities were secularised and given to secular Princes. 
The principality of the Archbishop of Salzburg passed to 
the Grand Duke of Tuscany. And in the Concordat con- 
cluded in 1801 between the Holy See and France, the Arch- 
bishoprics of Mayence and Treves were declared to be simple 
Bishoprics and Suffragans of Mechlin, and were given to 
other Bishops. The Prince Elector of Mayence, "who only 
remembered his Episcopal dignity", as Cardinal Pacca 
states, "when it was a question of attacking the Pope", did 
not survive this heavy blow and died on the 25 th of July 
1802. The Archbishop of Cologne, who had retired to Vienna, 
died the year before. The Archbishop of Salzburg did not, 
either, survive his humiliation, and also died at Vienna in 
1812, and the same year witnessed the decease of the Elector 



68 The State of the Church in Germany. 

of Treves, who, possessing another Bishopric, that of Augs- 
hurg had retired there. The same miserable fate befell the 
Chapters who had cooperated in the schism of the Arch- 
bishops. They too were secularised and their properties 
confiscated, while to the Canons was assigned only a small 
annual pension. Many of these were a rock of offence and 
a real stumbling-block of scandal to the people. They had 
embraced the Ecclesiastical state, not because they were 
thereto called by God, but because they could thus live like 
spendthrifts. Nor is to be wondered at that such men pre- 
ferred hunting, shooting, gambling and every other worldly 
sport to singing Office in Choir! Yery often it happened 
that a single individual appropriated several canonries and 
pocketed the revenues of the prebends without performing 
the smallest service to the Church. F. Clement wrote to 
Cardinal Litta on the 20 th of Febr. 1 8 1 7 in these terms : "The 
aristocratic Clergy in Germany, who shamefully appropriate 
the wealth of the Church , are in such a terrible state and 
have become such objects of ridicule and contempt to the 
people, that if any one wishes to express the depravity of 
any youth, they say: "He is a Count Canon!" 

The storm which burst on the schismatics, destroyed also 
many of the monasteries. And if some of these had deserved 
such a punishment, there were many who had maintained 
regular discipline and were a serious loss to the people. 

It was in these sad times that F. Clement came to Ger- 
many. If he found the rod of Divine Vengeance already 
lifted to scourge the enemies of the Church, it was impos- 
sible not to perceive the reason of the chastisment. On the 
ruins of the Church in Germany, Charles Dalberg had raised 
his throne, with the assistance of the Baron of Wessenberg. 
Dalberg not only continued to govern on the lines of the 
schismatical Council of Ems, but would, if it had been 
possible, have detached the Church in Germany altogether 
from the Roman See and made it Protestant. 



Who were Dalberg and Wessenberg . 69 

Cardinal Pacca,* with great reason, compares Dalberg 
with Fozio, both having the same object in view which was 
to rend the unity of the Church. Dalberg arrived at eccle- 
siastical dignities in this wise. The Elector of Mayence by 
infamous intrigues, induced Pope Pius VI. to permit the 
Chapter to nominate him as his Coadjutor with the right of 
succession, and the King of Prussia sent Marquis Luchesini 
to Rome to obtain the necessary Brief. He made the Pope 
believe that if he would confirm this nomination, the Arch- 
bishop would be once more closely bound to Rome : that it 
would put an end to the schism : would nullify the Ems de- 
clarations, and would be the means of maintaining intact 
the rights and dignity of the Holy See. The King's Mes- 
senger added: "That he was charged both by his Sovereign 
and the Archbishop to tender to the Pope the most solemn 
guarantees for the faithful performance of these promises." 
The Pope was deceived and believed in their assertions : so 
that in 1787, Dalberg, to the great joy of all the Sectarians 
and Jansenists, and to the sorrow of all good Catholics, was 
elected Coadjutor to the Archbishop of Mayence. 

Too late did the Pope realise the perfidy of his betrayers 
and the value of their promises : while the Archbishop ap- 
plied to the Diet of Ratisbon for the abolition of all Papal 
Nunxios throughout the Empire of Germany. 

Dalberg himself, not content with this first dignity, found 
means speedily to accumulate others. He became adminis- 
trator of the Bishopric of Worms, and Coadjutor of the 
Bishop of Constance, and this last Bishop having died on 
the 14 th of Jan. 1800, he took quiet possession of the Diocese 
and appointed Baron Wessenberg his Vicar General, he 
being then but 26 years old! Then, he played his cards so 
adroitly at the Diet of Ratisbon, that in 1803 he obtained 



* See ^Memorie storiche" by Monsg. Pacca on his sojourn in Germany 
from the year 1786 to 1794. Rome 1882. 



70 Who were Dalberg and Wessenberg . 

the dignity of principal Elector, of Archbishop of Ratisbon, 
of Metropolitan and Primate of all Germany and the Arch- 
Chancellorship of the Empire ! He was also nominated Se- 
cular Prince of Ratisbon, Frankfort, Aschaffenburgh, and 
other places. In this way his jurisdiction was almost un- 
limited and it may be said that Dalberg reigned over the 
whole Church in Germany. Add to this that in the first ten 
years of this century the few remaining Catholic Bishops 
died, so much so that this epoch was termed "The epoch of 
Vacant Sees". Finally, to crown the misfortunes of the un- 
happy Catholics in Germany, in 1809, the Pope was impris- 
oned; and so there was nO redress and no appeal to any 
authority which could have remedied such gigantic evils. 

Dalberg having , as we have seen , appointed Baron von 
Wessenberg as his Vicar General at Constance it was in- 
evitable that he and F. Hofbauer should speedily come into 
collision. We will therefore say a few words of the history 
of this man.* Ignatius Henry Wessenberg sucked in with 
his mother's milk the sentiments he afterwards manifested 
so painfully; for in his paternal home the French revolu- 
tion had been warmly applauded and Joseph II. was revered 
for his anti-religious innovations. In spite, however, of 
these views his father sent him in 1790 to Augsburg, to a 
college kept by the Fathers of the then suppressed Com- 
pany of Jesus. But as what he heard there was all in direct 
contradiction to his pet theories, Ignatius disliked the place 
extremely. In consequence of this, after having, with his 
younger brother Lewis, obtained two very comfortable pre- 
bendaries in the Chapters of the Cathedral at Basle and 
Constance, he went with Lewis to Dillingen to attend the 
University courses in that place. "This University", writes 
Dr. Beck, "was the first in Germany which accepted and 

* This history is taken from the Life of Wessenberg (published in Fri- 
hurg in 1862) written by his friend Dr. Beck, an Apostate Priest and 
Aulic Councillor of the Grand Duke of Baden. 



Who ivere Dalberg and Wessenberg. 71 

carefully cultivated Kant's philosophy. In the rays of this 
hright light, true scientific progress was made, together 
with serious critical investigations, unchecked by hostile 
influences ; the fruits of which, namely toleration and hu- 
manity, rendered it as famous in South Germany as it was 
suspected and attacked by the priest-ridden and Jesuitical 
followers of the old system. 

"Among the professors of this school , three were distin- 
guished above the rest: Joseph Weber, who by his lucid and 
philosophic explanations of Kant's doctrines, knew how to 
captivate the minds of his hearers, Benedict Zimmer, who 
in his dogmatical lectures threw continually fresh light on 
Kant's principles; and Michael Sailer, a theologian of pro- 
found convictions, who, with the burning zeal which carried 
him away and the beautiful language of which he was the 
master knew how to move all hearts and gain them over 
to his cause. And as Sailer leaned to a certain ecclecticism, 
his lessons on religion and morals were much frequented 
and were all based on the principles of Kant. 

"To such men", continues Dr. Beck, "with all the youth- 
ful enthusiasm of a soul who only sought after truth, Igna- 
tius Wessenberg warmly attached himself, and if he always 
regarded them with grateful affection, still more was he 
drawn towards Sailer, who soon became to him even more 
than a master."* 



* The partial praise bestowed on Sailer by this apostate and unbeliev- 
ing priest, became his worst condemnation. Nothing speaks more strongly 
against Sailer's writings than the exaggerated eulogiums bestowed npon 
them by Anti- Catholics, Deists and other heretics, together with his 
friendship for Jakobi, Boos, Gossner and other schismatics, who all ven- 
erated him as a Father. Therefore, if Sailer at the University, taught 
Kant's philosophy instead of Catholic theology, and magnified toleration 
and humanity above all other virtues, no wonder that his doctrines 
were impugned by the Ex-Jesuits of Augsburg and that the Bishop of 
that city refused him leave to teach. In the same way, the close in- 
timacy which he kept up all his life with Wessenberg, certainly did not 
redound to Sailer's honour. 



72 Who were Dalberg and Wessenberg . 

After Sailer left Dillingen, Wessenberg went on to the 
University of Wiirzburg, where he followed the lectures of 
Francis Oberthiir, who was equally imbued with the new 
ideas and who is the author of a book on the scope and ob- 
ject of Chapters in Cathedrals and on the Divine Office: 
which book was speedily prohibited by the S. Congregation 
of the Index. From Wiirzburg he passed to Vienna to assist 
at the lessons on ecclesiastical history of the Arch- Josephin- 
Professor Dannenmeier, whose name also may be found in 
the index. 

His studies being thus completed, it appeared to Baron 
von Dalberg (who had just been elected Bishop of Con- 
stance) that he was the very man to carry out his views in 
that Diocese as Vicar General. But first he had him at Ra- 
tisbon, where Dalberg got complete hold over him, and then 
he sent him to Switzerland, to confer with the Cantons on 
ecclesiastical questions and especially on those which re- 
garded the temporal property of the Church. 

It was in the beginning of the year 1802 that he took upon 
himself the Government of the Diocese of Constance. Being 
only a simple cleric, and a thoroughly worldly man, a vain 
and self-sufffcient youth, in fact, who knew nothing of theo- 
logy, never having studied dogma, or morals, or canon law, 
and on the contrary, being puffed up with pride in his new 
theories, and in his admiration for the principles of the 
French Revolution, and for the Josephin reforms, he chose 
to consider every thing wrong in the institutions and prac- 
tice of the Diocese and thought himself called upon to re- 
form every thing. What pleased him above all was the idea 
that he should enlighten and instruct the people in his own 
views. Hence he considered it to be the first duty of the 
Clergy not to offer the Divine Sacrifice or administer the 
Sacraments, but to teach. He sent back the seminarists, 
therefore, to the Elementary Schools, so that from the new 
masters he had placed there, they should learn what they 



Who were Dalberg and Wessenberg . 73 

were to teach the children. Without in any way respecting 
the Decrees of the Holy See, he rejected the Roman Ritual, 
and substituted another in German, which he ordered should 
be used througout the Diocese. The old rituals he objected 
to, as being, as he said, "full of superstitions", and to take 
away the forms of Benediction therein contained he called 
them "Esorcismi" and forbade the Clergy to make use of them 
without his permission. He tried to introduce the German 
language in the celebration of mass, and commanded that 
at every mass, not only the epistle and Gospel, but other 
parts should be read to the people in German. Hence such 
priests as dared to celebrate mass in the vulgar tongue, 
were sure of carrying favour with Wessenberg. In fact so 
bitter was he against the august ceremonies of the Church, 
that he ventured to stigmatise them as vestiges of Paganism 
and Judaism , leading to a Religion of mere show and pre- 
tence! All through mass, he insisted on the people's singing 
hymns in German which he drew up- and printed himself, 
and in which he inserted rationalistic sentiments drawn 
from the works of protestant poets. In every pious work he 
pretended to detect abuses and superstitions ; and so he ab- 
horred confraternities, pilgrimages and devotions to the holy 
Rosary. He set aside all good Parish Priests and zealous 
missioners, saying they were not up to the necessities of the 
times, and he placed men of neither faith nor character in 
the most important missions. In the Canton of Lucerne, 
which then belonged to the Diocese of Constance, he sup- 
pressed the Franciscan Convent of Wertenstein to plant a 
Seminary in its place: but when recalled by the Holy See 
to some sense of duty, he finally founded one in Lucerne ; 
but placed at the head of it the infamous Dereser, the author 
of the Breviary in the German tongues. In accordance with 
Febronius' principles, he determined to usurp altogether the 
powers of the Pope, pretending that they were due simply 
to the ignorance of the middle ages, and that with modern 



74 From 1802 to 1804. 

progress the Bishops should reclaim their rights and Princes 
forbid the interference of the Popes in their dominions. 

Such was the man placed at the head of the Constance 
Diocese. But the unhappy spirit which moved him predomi- 
nated unfortunately at that moment throughout Germany. 
The result of which was that when F. Clement arrived to 
found a house there of his order, he was nearly driven to 
despair at the state of things, and ardently desired to die 
and he with Christ, "Suffering too much at seeing the deso- 
lation of one of the most ancient and important Dioceses of 
Germany. The evil is the greater from the extent of the 
Bishopric of Constance, which contains more than three 
thousand parishes" : so wrote F. Thaddeus from Warsaw to 
the Father General on the 12 th of March 1806. 



CHAPTER X. 

F. Clement founds a House in the Diocese oe Constance. 
His journey to Rome and return to Warsaw. 

[From 1802 to 1804.] 

THE call to found this new house in Constance came 
from Prince John Schwarzenberg, encouraged thereto by 
the Apostolic Nunzio at Vienna, who was the great friend 
of Father Clement. This Prince, having in the Grand Duchy 
of Baden near Schaffhausen, a property called Iestetten on 
which was on old Convent called Mount Thabor, formerly in- 
habited by the monks of St. Norbert under the title of Per- 
petual Adoration, offered it to F. Clement, inviting him to 
establish there a Redemptorist Congregation, and though he 
did not assign to him any permanent revenues for the main- 
tenance of the community, yet so anxious was Father Cle- 
ment to have a house on German soil, that he accepted it 
at once, trusting in Divine Providence for the future. 



From 1802 to 1804. 75 

In order to judge of the state of the place and make the 
necessary arrangements, he left Warsaw on the 1 1 th of Novbr. 
1802 with F. Thaddens, a cleric, Francis Hofbauer, and a 
Novice, John Sabelli and arrived at Iestetten, passing by 
Vienna and Altoetting. It was by a special direction of 
Divine Providence that F. Clement was enabled to visit the 
famous Sanctuary of Mary at Altoetting, for by his presence 
and his prayers he thus sanctified a spot which, after his 
death, was to be the scene of the apostolic labours of his 
brethren. Sabelli wrote an account of F. Clement's ex- 
treme devotion to this Sanctuary. It seemed as if he could 
not tear himself away from that altar or from the image of 
Mary which is there venerated. 

Arrived at Constance, F. Clement was obliged to present 
himself to the Vicar General, Baron von Wessenberg, to 
obtain faculties for preaching and confessing in his Diocese : 
after which he proceeded to Mount Thabor. It was on the 
30 th of December 1802 that he and his three companions 
arrived at Iestetten. The miserable state of the house did 
not deter him, he being so anxious to have a pied-a-terre in 
Germany where he could labour for the good of souls. 
Without waiting a single day he began his Apostolic work. 
On the 3 rd of January he preached three times and after- 
wards four times on each Festival: i. e. during mass, ex- 
plaining the Epistle or Gospel ; and then at 1 o'clock, at 3 and 
at y 2 5. The people came in crowds to hear him, first from 
curiosity and then from real interest, and soon thronged his 
confessional. 

But his extraordinary activity and the great influx of 
people to his church naturally excited the jealousy of the 
parochial clergy, who felt that his zeal was a tacit reproach 
to their own lukewarmness. The Parish of Iestetten was a 
dependency of the Abbey of Rheinau and the Abbot of that 
day (Bernard III., Mayor of Schauenstein; made a formal 
remonstrance to Wessenberg. For once, however, Wessen- 



76 From 1802 to 1804. 

berg did not dare decide against Father Clement, whose extra- 
ordinary gifts had made such an impression that he replied 
to the Abbot as follows: "I do not doubt that so worthy an 
ecclesiastic will willingly come to an understanding with 
your Reverence regarding ecclesiastical functions. He will 
show you the faculties given to him by myself; and his zeal 
will, I feel sure, be a valuable assistance to your Rever- 
ence in the cure of souls. All I wish is, that all should be 
done in harmony. Semper quod bonum est, sectamini in invicem, 
et in omnes, 1. Thess. 5. 15. v." And in fact, F. Clement man- 
aged to soothe the susceptibilities of the parish priests, so 
that their relations were improved; whereas he speedily 
came to be at variance with the Vicar General especially 
in 1805. 

F.Clement not being able to remain permanently in charge 
of this house, summoned his favourite F. Passerat, of whose 
holiness and zeal he had had full proof in Warsaw, so that 
in July 1803 he was appointed Rector. 

Very soon after, he undertook a journey to France and 
for this reason. The Royal Family of France, being exiles 
at Mietau in Courland, had made acquaintance with the 
Redemptorists both there and in Warsaw, and especially 
with F. Passerat, who was their countryman. 

Hence, the Duchesse d'Angouleme entertained the hope 
that even in France a House of the Congregation might be 
established. F. Clement accordingly, taking with him F. 
Passerat, went to Joinville in Champagne which was F. Pas- 
serat' s own county, to see what could be done. And as in 
France the hatred to priests still existed, they travelled in 
secular clothes, so that the sacerdotal dignity should not be 
insulted. 

But they found insuperable difficulties in their under- 
taking: the religious spirit of the country had not yet 
sufficiently recovered the shock of the Revolution of 1 79.3, 
and so F. Clement gave up the plan for the time and re- 



From J802 to 1804. 11 

turned to Mont Thabor. To prove the tried virtue of 
F. Passerat and his fidelity to his vocation, the following 
anecdote will not be out of place. One day, his mother came 
into his room and to his great surprise presented him with 
an official paper which she implored him, with tears, to 
make use of, if he had any filial love left. This was a dis- 
pensation from his vows, which, without his knowledge, his 
mother had obtained from the Papal Legate , Caprara. But 
Passerat had given himself entirely to God and was so con- 
tent with his vocation that he flatly refused to receive the 
dispensation and declared to his mother that he was de- 
termined to persevere in the Congregation till the hour 
of his death. A most plainful scene followed, and a less 
strong vocation would certainly have yielded to such an 
assault. 

But he, notwithstanding his strong love for his mother, 
who employed every argument she could think of to dissuade 
him from his resolve, remained firm and resisted even his 
mother's tears and reproaches, till she felt it was in vain for 
her to plead any longer*. 

As soon as Father Clement had put every thing in work- 
ing order at Mt. Thabor, he left for Italy with F. Thad- 
deus, taking with him the three Clerics, Francis Hofbauer. 
John Sabelli and Casimir Langanki, which last had been 
lately summoned from Warsaw. F. Clement's object was 
to get them ordained, which could not be done elsewhere : 
not at Warsaw, partly on account of the Govt. Examination 
and also because the Bishops had severe orders not to ordain 
any who were not Prussian subjects: nor at Constance, as 
there was no Bishop. Dalberg remained in his secular pro- 
perty: and his Vicar General Wessenberg, had received 
nothing but minor orders and was not consecrated Priest 
even till the month of September 1812, atFulda! so that 
F. Clement had no alternative but to take his young Clerics 
to Italy, where he obtained from the Pope leave to have 



78 From 1802 to 1804. 

them ordained by any Bishop he pleased of the Latin rite 
in communion with the Holy See. 

F. Clement came to Rome by Milan and the St. Got- 
hard , about the middle of September. He took rooms in 
the Via cnique Lume with a respectable family who lived close 
to the Church of St. Augustine , so that he became intimate 
with the Augustinians. His young Clerics had remained 
at Spello, near Foligno, where the Congregation had a 
house : only F. Thaddeus accompanied him to Rome. Father 
Clement had set his heart on visiting the Tomb of his ven- 
erable Founder, Alphonsus di Liguori, which was at a 
short distance from Naples and on saluting the Father Gen- 
eral. "But Divine Providence", (he wrote on the 17 th of 
September 1803), "has ordained it otherwise. I could not 
get through my business here as quickly as I had hoped. 
In December I must be back in Warsaw: winter is at 
hand ; and if we return by the St. Gothard, I am afraid it 
will be already covered with snow. Then I have to go 
again into Switzerland to settle some things in the house at 
Mt. Thabor: after which I am obliged to go to Vienna and 
then to Warsaw. Every thing considered, I fear I must 
follow the prudent advice of Cardinal Litta and give up my 
Neapolitan visits. I hope that God may grant me the grace 
before I die to see the Tomb of our Venerable Founder and 
to confer with your Reverence on many things which con- 
cern the welfare of the Congregation. Here I have seen a 
good deal of F. Giattini, Procurator General and Postulator 
in the cause of our Venerable Father Alphonsus di Li- 
guori. He has treated me with fraternal benevolence and 
charity and has done me many services for which I shall 
be always deeply grateful to him". 

By a decree of the S. Congregation of Propaganda (dated 
3 rd of October 1803) the Holy Father Pius VII. having grant- 
ed the wished-for privilege, Clement returned to Spello and 
took his three Clerics to Foligno, where they were ordained 



From 1802 to 1804. 79 

Priests on the 28 th of Oct., by Bishop Marc Antonio Mos- 
cardini. They said their first mass on the Feast of St. Ra- 
phael and in the afternoon of that day, under the pro- 
tection of the great Archangel, they started for Loreto, 
where they celebrated their second masses in the Holy 
House : and then joyfully proceeded on foot towards Switzer- 
land. At Lucerne they paid a visit to the Nunzio, Testa- 
ferrata, and arrived without accident at Mt. Thabor on the 
1 5 th of November. 

The three young priests obtained the necessary faculties 
for hearing confessions and began to work zealously in 
saving souls. Among the novices was a priest named Jo- 
seph Hofbauer of the Diocese of Metz. He was 40 years of 
age and had 1 4 years of Priesthood : but having always re- 
fused to take the so-called Constitutional oath, he could not per- 
form any Ecclesiastical function and had been for some years 
even in peril of his life. He was of enormous advantage to 
the Congregation from his exemplary life and regular ob- 
servance and as master of the young Clerics he was ad- 
mirable. At the end of August 1803, he took the Religious 
habit together with Norbert Spitznagel, a laybrother. 

Father Clement, on his return from Rome found be- 
sides three other men who wished to be received into the 
Congregation, namely John Forster, Martin Schoeilhorn and 
Michael Baumgartner. Other candidates asked the same 
favour and filled his heart with joy and hope. He accepted 
them all and then , with F. Thaddeus , started on his way 
to Vienna. From thence he wrote on the 3 rd of December 
to announce his speedy departure for Warsaw. But having 
been delayed by unexpected business and the winter being 
very severe, he did not arrive at Warsaw till the 1 st of 
Jan. 1804. 



80 From 1804 to 1805. 



CHAPTER XI. 

New labours of Father Clement in Germany. A fresh 

Journey to Mount Thabor. He founds a House at Triberg, 

which, however, was speedily suppressed. 

[From 1804 to 1805.] 

GREAT was the joy of the faithful in Warsaw at F. Cle- 
ment and F. Thaddeus' safe return : and both zealously 
resumed their apostolic labours which were so visibly bles- 
sed by God. 

But half the new year had not passed before F. Cle- 
ment found himself again compelled to go to Switzerland, 
where his house was on the point of being abandoned for 
want of the commonest necessaries of life. F. Clement re- 
solved to start at once to see what could be done and at 
any rate to console his faithful sons by his presence ; so that 
towards the end of August he set out with Lewis Czech, 
whose narrative of their journey we will here give to our 
readers. 

"Father Clement", he writes, "sanctifies his journey by 
continual prayer and intercourse with God." 

He was obliged to stop two days in Dresden on business 
with the Royal Family, and three days in Augsburg and Con- 
stance. On the 21 st of September we arrived atMt. Thabor. 
But how describe the misery of this place! A ruined 
castle with 4 or 5 rooms, only habitable as long as the 
props remain which prevent the walls from crumbling to 
their foundations. The Clerics sleep under the roof of the 
church: the students in a tower where there are neither 
doors nor windows : and at which they arrive by a rope 
ladder. All the rest of the house is equally miserable. 
But even this state of things does not discourage the ser- 
vant of God. He shares all the hardships of his compa- 



From J 804 to 1805. 81 

nions , comforts them by his example, and has arrived at 
making them forget their misery in the joy of having so 
holy a Superior. 

He is incessantly occuped in hearing confessions, in 
preaching on Sundays and Festivals, and in writing Letters 
on the affairs of the Congregation. The little time that re- 
mains is spent by him in prayer and meditation. 

Our Lord, however, has given him one little bit of conso- 
lation. A deputation came from Triberg, a little town in the 
Black Forest, under the dominion of Archduke Ferdinand, 
begging him to send some priests to found a house of the 
Congregation in that place. There exists a Sanctuary there, 
once much frequented, but now neglected for want of 
priests. But the well-being of the poor people had greatly 
suffered from this cause : so that they made up their minds 
to establish some fresh priests in this Sanctuary ; and hav- 
ing heard of the fame of F. Clement and his Redempto- 
rists, applied to him to come to their assistance. So good 
an opportunity of labouring for the glory of God and the 
salvation of souls, was not to be lost and F. Clement ac- 
cepted their offer with great cordiality. Archduke Ferdinand 
offered to assign 320 francs annually to each of the three 
priests who were to be sent there : so that just before the 
Feast of Pentecost 1805, we started for Triberg. 

The journey was made on foot and as it poured with rain 
all day we were soaked to the skin. Night came on and 
we were still 9 miles from Triberg : there was no inn , so 
F. Clement knocked at a peasant's house und craved his 
hospitality. 

F. Clement got us some good soup : and for beds some 
hay which was spread in a barn. But there was no way of 
drying our clothes. Soaking wet we took them [off and 
equally soaking we put them on the next morning ! but the 
example of our holy Superior stifled all complaints or dis- 
content. 

6 



82 Father Clement's Foundation at Triberg. 

We were received at Triberg with open arms. A large 
number of the citizens accompanied us to the Sanctuary 
and from thence to the house, which was a spacious one, 
with two stories ; in the second lived two old priests who 
were unable to officiate : but on the first and ground floors 
there was plenty of room for F. Clement and his little band. 
He instantly began to work. Pentecost being so near at 
hand, no sooner was the news of the arrival of the mis- 
sioners made known, than thousands of peasants came 
pouring down from the woods and mountains so that the 
church could not contain one half of them. F. Clement 
himself preached and produced so extraordinary an effect, 
that the Sanctuary at once recovered its old prestige. Many 
who had made a vow to go on a pilgrimage to Einsiedeln, 
obtained a dispensation to visit, instead, the shrine of Mary 
at Triberg. The pilgrims came in shoals and from early 
morning till late at night, the confessionals were thronged. 
Generally F. Clement himself preached and fed them, not 
with idle words , but with the true bread of life, penetrat- 
ing into their hearts and souls, and producing innumer- 
able conversions. Without thinking of fatigue or taking 
the smallest care of his own strength, he followed the 
example of our Holy Redeemer and sacrificed himself body 
and soul for the salvation of these multitudes, hungering 
for the word of God". 

Very soon F. Clement had an additional consolation. F. 
Passerat had taken two of his Clerics to Lucerne (Antony 
Egle and John Hartmann) to have them ordained priests. 
Testaferrata , the Apostolic Nunzio, was, however, then at 
Solothurn , where the Diet was being held. There F. Pas- 
serat brought his spiritual sons, who were ordained by 
the Nunzio on the 9 th of June : when they immediately 
joined F, Clement at Triberg and said their first masses on 
the altar of the miraculous Madonna. At this important 
ceremony, according to the pious custom of Germany , an 



Father Clement's Foundation at Triberg. 83 

immense concourse of people assisted and the joy was uni- 
versal. 

Thus, in an incredibly short time, the servant of God 
won the confidence and affection of all : and a wide field 
was opened, as in Warsaw , for the conversion of innumer- 
able souls. Archduke Ferdinand, delighted at the success 
of the Fathers and the revival of piety in the town and dis- 
trict, offered to increase their revenues. But the people 
themselves came forward and supplied them with provisions 
and wood in abundance. 

"But the enemy of souls" (continues F. Czech) could not 
endure that through the medium of F. Clement and his 
priests so many souls should be snatched from his claws. In 
his infernal rage he roused a jealous fury in the minds of 
the old priests who had formerly served in this Sanctuary : 
and they represented to the Bishop's Curia at Constance 
that the Redemptorists were only ill-judged fanatics. How 
unjust such accusations were may be seen by the Archduke's 
letter to the Curia, inserted in an article published by Baron 
Andlaw in a periodical entitled: "Leaves of political history" — 
(of the year 1858 vol. 41). In this article it is stated: "That 
the old priests who had previously had charge of the Sanc- 
tuary, had given great scandal to the people by their im- 
moral lives and were moreover suspected of heresy from the 
innovations introduced by them in ecclesiastical functions. 
But when that great servant of God, F. Hofbauer began to 
preach in the fulness of faith, recommending the frequent 
reception of the sacraments, devotion to our Lady and the 
recital of the Rosary, the people at once recognised them as 
faithful and true priests of the Church of God and felt that 
they could trust them implicitly. This irritated the innova- 
tors and especially the Vicar General, Baron von Wessen- 
berg, who saw themselves thereby thwarted and hindered in 
their pretended reforms. In consequence, an active perse- 
cution was raised against the Fathers and the two new 



84 From 1804 to 1805. 

priests who had been ordained by the Apostolic Nunzio, 
were suspended from their ecclesiastical functions for that 
sole reason. Two other priests ordained in January 1805, 
were subjected to a rigorous examination in Friburg on the 
subject of confession and civil rights, and because they ne- 
cessarily could not satisfy the demands of the hostile exa- 
miners, they too were suspended, to the intense grief of the 
people." Wessenberg then sent two secular priests to serve 
the Sanctuary. One was an inexperienced youth ; the other 
an incapable and ignorant old man, who had giyen up the 
trade of bookbinding to become a priest. He had grown-up 
sons, and both utterly disgusted the people. The Govern- 
ment sent a severe reproof to Wessenberg for this change, 
which irritated him profoundly, tho' in the life-time and 
under the Government of the Archduke Ferdinand he was 
obliged to dissemble his resentment. But unhappily, in the 
following year, Friburg and the Black Forest were ceded to 
the Grand Duchy of Baden, and then Wessenberg having no 
longer any check, suspended the remaining Fathers. In vain 
did the poor inhabitants send deputations to Constance and 
Carlsruhe, the seat of Government, imploring the reinstate- 
ment of the Congregation. The Government being Pro- 
testant were only too glad to second Wessenberg' s views and 
the Redemptorists were suppressed. Clement, therefore, 
sorrowfully was compelled to abandon this promising field 
of operations. He had already started a small college of 12 
boys in Triberg and was instructing them in Latin and other 
things. But only one followed him, John Kaltenbach, who 
afterwards became a most zealous missioner. 

Two illustrious Prelates have borne witness to the great 
work done by F. Clement during his short stay in Triberg. 
One is the Archbishop of Friburg, Herman of Vicari, who 
in a letter written on the 1 st March 1865 to H. H. Pius IX, 
says: "The venerable F.Clement opened a flourishing house 
in this country (Triberg) and acquired by his great virtue 



From 1805 to 1806. 85 

and his indefatigable labours so much veneration and es- 
teem from all the good, that his name and his memory, even 
to this day, are held in highest honour/' 

The other, a Vicar Capitular, Lothair Kubel, Bishop of 
Leuca 1. p. 1. in a letter to Cardinal Patrizi of the 29 th of 
August 1868, writes: "The memory of this holy Priest, so 
inflamed with zeal for the glory of God and so eminent for 
the sanctity of his life and conversation, is a benediction to 
the people even to this hour." While among the records of 
the Parish Priest of Triberg, we find the following : 

"The Redemptorist Fathers came here on the 30 th of May 
1805. Their community consisted of five priests, their Su- 
perior being a certain F. Hofbauer, who by the holiness of 
his life was called by the people "The Holy Father" 



CHAPTER XII. 

Clement takes refuge with his brethren at Babenhausen. 
The virtues he there exercised. 

[From 1805 to 1806.] 

ANTONY of Nigg, Vicar General of the Diocese of Augs- 
burg, formerly a student of the German College at Rome 
and always a faithful son of the Church, was a great friend 
and admirer of F. Clement's, and by his advice, Clement ap- 
plied to a Prince of the Empire, Anselm of Fugger in Ba- 
benhausen, to give an asylum to his persecuted Religious. 
The Prince gladly acceded to his request and Clement has- 
tened to Augsburgh with F. Sabelli to obtain the consent of 
the Prince Bishop Clement Wenceslaus, who was Elector of 
Treves. Although he arrived on the 6 th of October he could 
not succeed for a long time in obtaining what he sought: for 
the French army had entered the city, led by the Emperor 
Napoleon. Finally towards the end of the month he obtained 



86 From 1805 to 1806. 

faculties to found a house in this Diocese and therein to 
exercise his sacred ministry. 

F. Sabelli records a grave danger which befell F. Clement 
between Augsburg and Babenhausen. He was stopped by 
a French soldier, who, putting the point of his sword to 
his breast, imperatively demanded his cloak. F. Clement 
without being the least disturbed or frightened, quickly 
unclasped it and gave it to him ; and then went on with his 
journey quite contentedly and without showing the least 
vexation. 

The first days of November 1805, Clement had already 
gathered round him in Babenhausen all the community from 
Mt. Thabor and from Triberg. The excellent Parish priest 
of Weinried, F.Wagner, with singular charity, housed them 
all in his own presbytery and generously maintained them. 
From want of beds, however, several of them slept upon 
straw placed in one of the rooms. Soon after, they hired a 
small house in Babenhausen : but that again was much too 
small to hold them: and here again the F. Rector Passerat, 
slept upon straw and most of his community had to do the 
same. Under such circumstances, F. Clement gratefully ac- 
cepted the Parish priest's proposal to remain on for the pre- 
sent in his house: not because he was more comfortable 
there, but because he could preach and hear confessious at 
Weinried, which the Parish priest at Babenhausen would 
not permit. The moment these saintly avocations were ful- 
filled, he would hasten to Babenhausen, which was only a 
quarter of an hour from Weinried, minding neither rain, 
nor snow nor the bad roads, and there share in the com- 
munity life and in the education of the students and console 
and edify all by his kindness and sympathy. One day, for 
instance, being the 23 rd of January and his name-day, he 
took a walk of three hours to go and congratulate a good pea- 
sant woman who had done him a service and whose Feast 
it likewise was ; and he seasoned his walk with such plea- 



From 1805 to 1806. 87 

sant and holy talk that the students who accompanied him 
thought themselves only too fortunate to be able to profit 
by his conversation. As his Divine master did not come upon 
earth to be served but so serve others, to this holy Superior 
in his charity and humility, did not hesitate in like manner 
to serve his brethren. At that time they had a brother, Nor- 
bert, who was an abominable cook and especially when he 
tried to prepare any meagre dish. F. -Clement determined 
to teach him himself, and during that Lent, after having 
cooked the dinner, he would sit down with the rest, not to 
eat for that he did alone towards evening), but to listen 
to the spiritual reading. 

The house they had taken at Babenhausen was not only 
much too small, but terribly damp and unhealthy. In con- 
sequence, they moved in February into a larger one: but 
there they suffered even more from the intense cold and the 
lack of fuel. But neither poverty nor suffering ever discour- 
aged the servant of God or disturbed his habitual tran- 
quillity : he being persuaded that apostolical labours are the 
more blessed by God and the more fruitful in the salvation 
of souls, in proportion as the travail and mortifications ac- 
companying them are greater. Whilst some of the Fathers 
had to attend to the training and instruction of the clerics, 
the others devoted themselves to the sacred ministry. But 
F. Clement was the apostle of the district, especially in 
Weinried, where his unwearied zeal produced the most ex- 
traordinary change for the better in the habits of the people. 
Both there and in the neighbouring Parish of Kirchaslach, 
where he often went with F. Sabelli, the people flocked 
from all parts to hear him and marvellous were the conver- 
sions which resulted from his preaching and his confessional. 

All this time, he was in a very suffering state of health, 
which we find out from a letter written by F. Thaddeus on 
the 12 th of March 1806 to the Superior General Blasucci: 
"Our holv Father Vicar" he writes) "has had, with his Fa- 



88 From 1805 to 1806. 

thers, to bear the whole brunt of the war in Germany: but 
he is indefatigable in his zeal for souls and though not able 
to give missions, he is instant in preaching and expounding 
the word of God and confessing with wonderful fruit. For 
seven months I have not received a line from him, as, owing 
to the war, the greater part of our correspondence is lost, 
and the letters I have received are written by his secretary 
and not by himself, for he is too ill to do so. May I intreat 
your Reverence to pray earnestly for him and to get the 
other Fathers in Italy to do the same, that his health may 
be restored ; for I really do not know what we should do 
without him. We need him more than I can express." 

The Parish priest of Weinried, Lewis Vicari, in the depo- 
sition made by him during the cause of his beatification 
writes : "All those who ever knew the venerable Father Cle- 
ment here speak of him with the like affection and veneration, 
not only for his zeal in preaching and hearing confessions, but 
also for his devoted care of the sick and dying. His sermons 
were simple in style and intelligible to all, but wonderful in 
their effects. While reading the Gospel in the vulgar ton- 
gue before the sermon as is the custom in Germany, he 
would very often interrupt himself to explain this or that 
passage ; and sometimes he would ask questions of his audi- 
ence, promising to those who answered well that he would 
say mass for them. However short the notice might be, if he 
were going to preach in some fresh church, the people would 
come there in crowds and very often after the sermon would 
beg to make a general confession. He was quite untireable 
in the Confessional. Sometimes, while he was saying his 
office in church, some one would come in, looking for a 
confessor perhaps and he would at once go up to that person 
and ask if he or she wished to go to confession? And all in- 
variably replied"Yes, Father", although some had not thought 
of it before. He was very skilful also in giving penances 
according to the characters and circumstances of each, in 



From 1805 to 1806. 89 

which he showed extraordinary prudence and discretion.* 
In fact his apostolic zeal so penetrated the hearts of the 
people, that in that parish and neighbourhood from that 
hour till now, persons began to lead and have continued to 
lead, the most perfect and pious lives, which they attribute 
entirely to this great servant of God and his teaching. Most 
edifying above all was his way of saying mass. He endeav- 
oured by every means in his power to procure splendour 
and beauty in Divine Worship, and any spare moments 
found him invariably in church in adoration of the Blessed 
Sacrament. He would say office and sing hymns in honour 
of our Lady with his brethren with such fervour and devo- 
tion that people used to exclaim : "Hark at the angels sing- 
ing!" He introduced in Weinried the recitation of the 
angelical Rosary (the habit of w T hich is still in use) , a devo- 
tion admirably calculated, to incite faith, adoration of God 
and veneration of the B. Virgin.** To revive the faith and 
love of the people, this great servant of God distributed 
gratuitously among them the works of St. Alphonsus. His 
faith in Divine Providence was so great that if any one 
asked him 'how they lived V he would always reply : "By the 
Providence of God" And never did it fail him. On one occa- 
sion, when he and his congregation were reduced to great 
straits, there suddenly arrived at the door a whole cart-load 
of provisions, and no one could find out who had sent them. 
F. Clement was always praying: in the house, out of the 

* For instance, he would give, as a penance, to one person to cut her 
bread on the side she liked least : or, not to look out of window for so 
many days, no matter what persons or carriages passed, and the like. 

** This "angelical" Rosary differs from what is found in the "Raccolta", 
and is in honour of the Blessed Trinity by the frequent repetition of 
"Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth", as well as of the 
Blessed Virgin. When the writings of Father Clement were sought for 
by order of the Holy See in 1868, the Parish Priest of Pless sent this 
Rosary to the Bishop's Curia at Augsburg, adding: "Blessed is the Pa- 
rish which offers up this sublime Prayer to the Throne of the Most High. 
It was my edification and joy for more than KH/2 years." 



90 From 1805 to 1806. 

house, in church, in the street, always did he seem to be con- 
versing with God in his heart, and holding his rosary in his 
hand. One day when he was saying his office in winter be- 
hind the house, some one having asked him how he could 
bear such great cold, F. Clement answered quietly : "The love 
of God warms everything". Intent only on bringing back stray 
sheep into the fold, he never minded cold, or heat, or bad 
roads or any other hardship when it was a question of exer- 
cising his apostolate. Thus, one day, he carried on foot and 
for a long way a very heavy sum of money which had been 
given in restitution, his shoes all the time being filled with 
snow-water. Sometimes when he was sent for to sick people 
who lived at a great distance, the Fathers would try and 
dissuade him from going so far. But he would answer: "So 
much the better, for I shall then have time to say the Ro- 
sary more often for the sick person." In the same way, 
he showed heroic charity towards his enemies. Once having 
been abused and insulted by a youth who went to the length 
of breaking the windows of his house, the neighbours ran 
out to punish him. But F. Clement called out: "Don't hurt 
him! I am just going into church to say mass for him". 

He continually admonished the people to pray more for 
great sinners and this never failed to produce its effect. With 
the simplest words he would bring back people into the 
right way and induce them to lead holy lives. One day, the 
wife of the blacksmith of the country, a woman of a certain 
age, and probably not far from having to appear in the pre- 
sence of God, came to see him, when he spoke to her upon 
the duty of frequenting the sacraments more often. She 
answered*: 

"But, Father, what would people say if they saw the wife 
of the blacksmith receiving the Sacraments so frequently?" 
F. Clement sent her away without adding anything more : 
but soon after, when preaching on that very subject, he 
said : "You all know that the frequent reception of the Sa- 



From 1805 to 1806. 91 

craments is a holy and necessary thing : hut the wife of the 
blacksmith answers : "What would people say if I went so 
often?" O! my good lady! what Avould people say if the wife 
of the blacksmith were to go to hell?" 

Another day, when he was preaching, he saw a young 
man langhing: "O! my boy!" he exclaimed, "this is not a 
place in which you should laugh. I fear you have never 
thought of your faults or of doing penance for them!" which 
simple words had such an effect on the youth, that from 
that moment he began to lead a thoroughly good and Chris- 
tian life. On another occasion, finding a mountebank who, 
for a small sum of money, was singing improper songs , F. 
Clement stopped him and exhorted him to follow another 
trade if he wished to go to Heaven, as the bread he gained 
in that way was baked by the devil. Nor did he give him 
up till he had found him some other employment. There 
was a certain notorious atheist.in the place whom no one 
could do anything with and who was a man of infamous 
character besides. F. Clement succeeded in converting him; 
and to every one's astonishment, this very man came to the 
Parish Church one Sunday and on his knees asked pardon 
of the congregation for the scandal he had given. The ven- 
erable old Parish Priest was so overjoyed at this conversion 
that he jumped about like a child. 

We have mentioned the sum of money, by way of resti- 
tution, which F. Clement carried one day. The person to 
whom he brought it refused to accept it: but F. Clement 
insisted : "It would not be well for you to give back this 
sum to the man who had cheated you and who is now tho- 
roughly penitent ; for otherwise he might think less of the 
sin of theft." 

The good people seeing that F. Clement's coat and cassock 
were all worn and threadbare, had some fresh cloth dyed 
and presented him with a new suit, which he accepted with 
great gratitude and was delighted with the gift. But every 



92 From 1805 to 1806. 

where the fame of his humility and charity was spread 
abroad. When, one day, I was speaking about collecting evi- 
dence for the cause of the beatification of this great servant 
of God, one answered me: "What? they talk of cannonising 
F. Clement ! But he was a Saint already when he was living 
amongst us!" And another added: "I am but a rough soldier: 
but I would have given my life for F. Clement." When 
he came into the church, the people would all rise and -bow 
profoundly, many sighing and saying they felt as if it were 
our Lord himself passing by. They would kiss the hem of 
his cassock when he was not looking and preserved every 
little thing he had used or touched as a precious relic. It 
was only to the thoroughly bad or to the hardened schismatics 
that he was an object of hatred and dread. In order to keep 
back any one from doing wrong, or encourage him in virtue, 
the people still have the habit of exclaiming : " What would 
Father Clement say?" Many attribute to him not only their 
own salvation but the material prosperity of the country, 
thinking that he had obtained that grace from God as a 
reward for their fidelity to his teaching. I gave one day a 
picture of the Saint to an old woman ol70, without saying 
whose it was. She had hardly taken it into her hand, than 
she exclaimed joyfully : "O ! this is our dear and holy Father 
Clement", and covered it with kisses — so strong was the 
impression that even his features had made on the memory 
of a person who had not seen him for 50 years! One of my 
predecessors in the Parish of Weinried , a most excellent 
priest, told me solemnly that if it had not been for Father 
Clement, he should not have had a hope of being saved. 
And this was only one of the thousands of souls he had con- 
verted." 

To this interesting account from the pen of the Priest 
Vicar, we will only add one or two more instances of the 
veneration in which his memory is held in that place. 

In August 1867 we found ourselves for a few hours only 



F. Clement returns to Warsaw. 1806. 93 

in Babenhausen and several people came to us who had known 
F. Clement personally. One of these, who, as a boy, had 
served his mass , said that he never could forget the devo- 
tion with which he offered the Holy Sacrifice. Another men- 
tioned with what intense charity he would assist the sick in 
the Hospital, of which the Parish priest had given him the 
entire care. He sent every day one of his Fathers to say 
mass there : and instructed a certain number of youths to 
act as infirmarians, the Sisters of Charity having been exiled. 
In the presbytery we saw, not without emotion, that the little 
room which F. Clement had inhabited, had been always 
kept as a Sanctuary, and contained a large picture of him 
which was held in great veneration. And this is the more 
remarkable, as the house being very small, this room would 
be very useful. But no one has been allowed to occupy it 
since : and it is looked upon as a holy place. 

In fact, we can only say, in conclusion, that F. Clement 
exercised the most wonderful and salutary influence over 
all with whom he came in contact, and the marvellous 
thing is, that he was only ten months in this place, where 
his memory is so tenderly cherished and revered ! ! while 
other excellent priests are forgotten who yet had passed 
their whole lives in the Parish and laboured with zeal and 
fidelity in the discharge of their duties. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Persecutions endured by the Redemptorists at Baben- 
haisen. Father Clement returns to Warsaw. 

[1806.] 

THE apostolate and the cross are twins and inseparable 
one from the other. As our Divine master said to His dis- 
ciples : "The servant is not greater than his master. If they 



94 F. Clement returns to Warsaw. 1806. 

have persecuted me they will also persecute you." (St. John 
XV. Chap. 20. V.) If F. Clement had had to drink of the bitter 
cup of persecution in Triberg, what could he hope for in 
Babelhausen? It would have been strange indeed if the devil 
had allowed such spiritual triumphs in a place, without 
endeavouring to destroy them. 

The enormous success of F. Clement and his disciples and 
the great veneration shown them by the people, gave um- 
brage to certain priests ; partly because the zeal shown by 
the Redemptorists was a reproach to their own idleness; 
partly because, being imbued with the false and heretical 
ideas of the day, they hated all that was so essentially Ca- 
tholic and Papal. 

Even Prince Anselm of Fugger, who was so attached to 
the missioners that he had himself made a design for a new 
College and Church for them, and who had implored F. Sa- 
belli to undertake the education of his sons, was deceived 
by these men into believing many things which were false- 
ly adduced against them. However, when he saw how 
bitter and unjust was their persecution of F. Clement and 
his Fathers and how patiently they bore it, he did his best 
to protect them. But unfortunately in July 1806, he lost 
his rights as Prince of the Empire and then could no longer 
defend them. 

F. Clement foresaw the coming storm and wrote in 
June 1806 to the Procurator General in Rome imploring 
the prayers of their Italian brethren. "It is impossible to 
foresee," he writes "into whose hands this country will 
fall". And again in a letter of the 21 st of July, in which 
he warmly praises the Vicar General of Augsburg, Antony 
of Nigg, he adds : "We have so many enemies in this place 
that we need warm friends. We are living in the midst of 
terrible auxiety and need to take Heaven by storm that we 
may obtain help from God." 

The vilest and most absurd lies were circulated against 



F. Clement returns to Warsaw. 1806. 95 

F. Clement, which no one could believe who was not eaten 
up with prejudices. Amongst other things, they declared 
that on his going to visit the sick at Illerberg, he had broken 
open the tabernacle door to get at the sacred particles, be- 
cause the Parish Priest had refused him the key. This 
calumny, which was even carried to the judge at Roggen- 
burg, was emphatically denied by word of mouth and in 
writing by the Parish Priest himself. It was true that F. 
Clement had been to Illerberg and taken Holy Communion 
to some sick people there : but with the full consent of the 
Parish Priest, who had begged him, moreover, to spend the 
night in his house and to say mass in his church the next 
morning and in a parochial note dated the 20 th of February 
1806 this very priest writes: "F. John Clement Hofbauer, 
Vicar General of the Order of the Redemptorists , came 
here to-day. The object of his Congregation is to revive 
the Faith in these days of unbelief. He is trying to found 
colleges everywhere with the consent of the local authori- 
ties and the Princes, for the education of youth in our 
holy religion. Father Clement is a man of great eloquence 
and learning and besides most courteous and pleasing in 
manner, and full of holiness and zeal for religion. He 
speaks German beautifully and knows all the great people 
in Vienna even of the Imperial Court. We supped together 
and had a most interesting conversation on spiritual and 
scientific subjects". 

In the same Parochial- Diary we find on the 22 nd of July 
the following notice. 

"I have had a visit to-day from the abbot of the suppressed 
monastery ofRoggenburg: and he tells me that the Directory 
of Ulm have prohibited the Redemptorists from labouring 
in their apostolic mission within the confines of Bavaria", 
which unhappily was quite true. 

The Bavarian Government not having yet taken pos- 
session of the principality of Babenhausen , they could not 



96 F, Clement returns to Warsaw. 1806. 

prohibit the exercise of F. Clement's ministry in that pro- 
vince. And the labours of these "Preachers of Penance" as the 
people called them, being confined to this little principality, 
all the inhabitants of the neighbourhood nocked into Baben- 
hausen and Weinried, so that our Redemptorists were over- 
whelmed with fatigue. The Bishop's Curia at Augsburg 
had given them leave to say mass and preach in the little 
church of the Hospital: so that on the 2 nd of July, F. An- 
tony Egle preached the first sermon and F. Clement set up 
the Via Crucis in this church, to the great delight of the 
sick. On the 3 rd Sunday of this same month the Feast of 
the most Holy "Redeemer was solemnly celebrated there with 
High Mass and sermon throughout the octave ; while on the 
last day, F. Clement gave the people the Papal Benediction : 
to the immense consolation of the assembled crowds. 

But the greater was their satisfaction with the missioners 
and the warmer their affection for them, the more in- 
dignant (we say it with sorrow) were the Parish priests 
And the one at Babenhausen never rested till he had got 
the authorities to prohibit the services in the hospital. 

At last, on the 3 rd of August 1806, the principality of 
Babenhausen by Royal Decree, was incorporated with the 
Kingdom of Bavaria. On this occasion, the good Prince 
Fugger, whose authority now only extended to minor 
cases, assured the Fathers that he would do his utmost to 
protect them : but he told them privately that he had very 
little hope of success: and advised them strongly to look 
out elsewhere for the future. 

Father Clement felt terribly the coming destruction of a 
house from which he had hoped for so much fruit and all 
the more, from the eagerness with which the people had 
responded to his appeal. To increase his sorrow, bad news 
came also from Warsaw, where the house was also gravely 
threatened ; and the Fathers besought him to return there 
and help them in their troubles. Clement, finding he could 



Clement returns to Warsaw, J 806. 97 

do no more at Babenhausen, resolved to return to Warsaw, 
leaving F. Passerat to preside over the Community at Baben- 
hausen as long as it was possible to remain there. On taking 
leave of them, he exhorted them with tears to persevere in 
their holy vocation, even under the most painful circum- 
stances and added: "Pray, my beloved Bretheren, pray 
earnestly that the Congregation may not perish. The times 
are evil, and who knows what will come next? Perhaps we 
may never see one another again : but in all circumstances, 
let us hope in Divine Providence". 

On the 1 th of August, after having received the vows of 
the Polish novice, Schulski, he started for Vienna with a 
cleric, Martin Stark, as his companion. On this journey 
we have heard of a fact which proves more strongly than 
ever the influence F. Clement had over men's minds and 
hearts, and the unlimited confidence he had in Divine Pro- 
vidence. They arrived one evening at an inn where they 
were to rest for the night, very tired and faint, for they had 
eaten nothing all day; but unhappily their purse was 
empty ! Several times during their toilsome march , poor 
young Stark had complained of terrible hunger, and F. Cle- 
ment had promised him food on arrival. But the inn- 
keeper would give nothing on credit and there was only a 
little straw for them to lie upon. Stark reminded F. Cle- 
ment of his promise, which the latter renewed. In the same 
room were two men gambling, and soon from quarrelling 
they came to cursing and swearing. This was more than 
F. Clement could stand: and .rising from the straw, spoke 
to the men with such sweetness and charity imploring them 
not to offend the good God, that his aspect and words 
touched both their hearts and they not only ceased their 
bad language and threw up their cards, but they ordered a 
good dinner and to show their gratitude, insisted on F. Cle- 
ment and his companion sharing it with them. F. Clement 
accepted; and turning to his young cleric said: "Now, do 

7 



98 Clement returns to Warsaw, 1806. 

you see how God never abandons his servants!" On 
many other occasions besides this one, F. Clement showed 
an extraordinary power in converting souls. One day, he 
was travelling in a carriage with a young man who was very 
ill both in body and mind: and in spite of all F. Clement's 
tender charity and kindness, he did nothing but swear at 
and insult him. Finding that his loving remonstrances were 
unheeded, he resolved to bear it all in silence. When they 
arrived at the inn where they were to get down and dine, 
the young man tried to do so, but was so weak that he could 
not move. Then F. Clement, forgetting the insult he had 
received, carried him in his own arms tenderly into the inn 
and after dinner, with a like charity, carried him back into 
the carriage. This extraordinary kindness and generosity 
touched the young man to the heart and he made a public 
apology to our Saint, exclaiming : "If I had known such a 
priest sooner, I should not have fallen into so miserable a 
state as I am in now!" 

On the 3 rd of Septbr. F. Clement arrived in Vienna and 
met his dear companion, F. Thaddeus, who had come from 
Warsaw on purpose to explain to him by word of mouth the 
grave perils with which their house in that city was threat- 
ened : so that they stayed some weeks in Vienna to try and 
find a refuge in xiustria for their persecuted Congregation. 
But from the sad condition of that country after the disas- 
trous war with France, they found there was no hope of 
making any foundation there for the moment - so that in 
December they both returned to Warsaw, where F. Clement 
was received as an Angel of consolation. 



From 1806 to 1807. 99 

CHAPTER XIV. 

The Redemptorists are driven from Babenhausen and take 
refuge in Switzerland. 

A short notice of F. Clement's first disciples. 
[From 1806 to 1807.] 

WHILST Father Clement was occupied in Vienna with the 
troubles of his Warsaw House, affairs in Babenhausen went 
from bad to worse. On the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy 
Cross, a Royal Commission took possession of the Princi- 
pality. The following day the Government officials took 
the oath to the King of Bavaria; and two days later, the 
Redemptorists received notice that in a couple of months 
they must leave Babenhausen. F. Clement having received 
this sad news on the 4 th of Oct., wrote to F. Passerat de- 
siring him to try and find an asylum in Switzerland. On the 
9 th , F. Passerat started accordingly, and went to Coire, Rhein- 
felden and other places, but without any result and so re- 
turned on the 27 th of the same month to Babenhausen. 

Divine Providence, however, did not forsake them. On 
the 19 th of Novbr., a letter arrived unexpectedly from Coire, 
in which Baal, the Chancellor of the Bishop of Coire, invited 
the Fathers to take refuge in the deserted Convent of St. 
Luke, which had been occupied by the Premonstratensians, 
who had been lately dispersed, after having lost all their 
possessions in Vorarlberg and in the principality of Lichten- 
stein. They had ceded their monastery, by permission of the 
Holy See, to the Bishop of the Diocese for the use of his 
Seminary ; but, later on, this Seminary had been transferred 
to Meran. This Bishop of Coire was a rare gem of the Epis- 
copal Order— namely, the holy and excellent Count Buol- 
Schauenstein ; who was delighted at the idea of having these 
good Religious for his church and schools in the place of 
the dissolved Premonstratensians. And he was still more 



100 From 1806 to J 807. 

pleased when he found that the Redemptorists asked for no 
reward for their labours. He only exacted, as a condition, 
the consent of their Vicar General, so that F. Passerat wrote 
instantly to F. Clement, who accepted the offer with joy. 
F. Passerat started accordingly for Coire to make all the 
necessary arrangements, taking with him F. Hartmann and 
the laybrother Bonaventura Stoll. Having settled everything 
with the Bishop and his council, F. Passerat returned to 
Babenhausen to fetch his remaining subjects, who were in 
a very critical position and only not violently expelled thanks 
to the energetic remonstrances of good Prince Fugger. 

The Bavarian Government, to avoid the odium of a violent 
expulsion, but to ensure the departure of the Redemptorists, 
put out the following decree : 

"In the Name of His Majesty the King of Bavaria." 
&c. . . . &c. . . . &c. . . . &c. . . . &c. . . . 
"According to the Report received regarding the Redemp- 
torists residing in Babenhausen, where they had been of 
late tolerated though not regularly established, the Governor 
of the Principality is hereby informed : 

1 . That he is not to insist on driving them away hastily, but 
graciously to concede to them six month's indulgence, 
reckoning from to day, and that on account of the coming 
winter. Which indulgence must be immediately commu- 
nicated to the Redemptorist Fathers, enjoining them, at 
the same time to make immediate arrangements for eva- 
cuating the Royal States at the required time. 

2. The said Fathers are strictly forbidden, under the most 
stringent penalties, to admit into their order any indi- 
vidual whether as priest or laybrother. 

3. They may not in any case, or on any pretext, render any 
service in the cure of souls, whether it be by preaching, 
hearing confessions or visiting the sick. Their ministra- 
tions must be limited to saying mass. 



From 1806 to 1807. 101 

4. A Register must be hept of the said Redemptorists, show- 
ing their nationality, their physical state, and the time of 
their entrance into and profession of their order. 

5. They must be taken away from the Hospital which was 
confided to their care, and send in a report to the under- 
signed of the condition of the said Hospital. 

6. The Governor of the Principality will draw up a protocol 
of these conditions to be submitted to the Redemptorists 
and the said protocol only signed by the Superior and two 
other members of the Congregation (in proof of having 
received it) shall be sent to us within eight days. 

Ulm, 19 th of December 1806. 
Kingdom of Bavaria territorial direction in Switzerland. 

(Signed) Baron von Leiden. 

The Parish Priest of Babenhausen, with a zeal worthy of 
a better cause, hastened to carry out the execution of this 
decree by prohibiting the Fathers on Xmas Eve from ad- 
ministering Holy Communion. As to the "Gracious" conces- 
sion of the Government to allow them to protract for six 
months their stay in Babenhausen, it is needless to say that 
the Fathers did not take advantage of it: for to prohibit 
them from preaching, hearing confessions, or visiting the 
sick and thus condemning them to total inaction, was like 
depriving fish of water and birds of air. Accordingly on the 
3 rd of Jan. 1807, F. Hofbauer and the clerics started for 
Coire, and two days later, F. Passerat with F. Louis Czech, 
who had taken the habit before their departure. The few 
that remained on at Babenhausen had much to suffer : for 
on the 22 nd they received an unexpected visit from the Royal 
Commissioner, Baron von Leiden, with a Secretary, who 
made a rigorous inquisition into the state of the house and 
accused the Fathers of having encouraged the young men 
not to submit to the new military levy. Under Prince 
Fugger this species of conscription was unknown : but was 



102 From 1806 to 1807. 

put into operation as soon as the Bavarian Government had 
taken possession of the principality. It was, therefore, not 
to he wondered at that it was only submitted to unwillingly 
and by force, and whenever possible the youth resorted to 
emigration to avoid it. "Very willingly", they said, "will we 
serve our King : but we are not disposed to shed our blood 
for a foreign Sovereign like Napoleon." The Redemptorists 
were made responsible for this reluctance, and it was even 
asserted that they had publickly preached against this new 
military law. It is needless to state that the whole accusa- 
tion was a palpable calumny and that they had never been 
guilty of such an act of imprudence. But the Commissioners 
pretended to have proofs of their assertion and so the Fa- 
thers were subjected to a rigorous examination as to their 
habits, works and way of life. F. Hofbauer submitted a 
quantity of pulpit notes to the Commissioners, who after 
having looked them over returned them, saying that they 
had been certainly calumniated. 

Another accusation against the Fathers was, that they 
practised medecine and had a pharmacy in their house. This 
was partly true : for in the country, where a Doctor was not 
always at hand, the}- used to give certain simple medecines 
to the people and had learned what to do in case of sudden 
accidents. But this, which was one of their works of mercy, 
was imputed to them as a crime. The whole house was 
searched ; but no pharmacy was found. 

Again the Fathers were accused of having private confes- 
sionals now that they were forbidden openly to hear their 
penitents. But again was the house ransacked to find these 
confessionals and in vain! The Royal Commission, therefore, 
was compelled to acquit them and declare their innocence 
of the different charges brought against them : but with the 
usual injustice of persecutors, they forbid their living to- 
gether any longer in community. Upon this decision being 
made known, Prince Fugger advised the remaining Fathers 



From 1806 to 1807. 103 

to depart immediately, although, he was grieved to lose F. 
Sabelli who was the Tutor of his sons. On the 11 th of Febr., 
therefore, the whole community with their students, left 
Babenhausen , amidst the tears and heartfelt regrets of the 
good. And it was very lucky that they started when they 
did, for two days later came an order from the Governor re- 
fusing them passports! The poor people had clubbed toge- 
ther to find money for their journey and had moved their 
furniture for them in carts to Bregenz, where they were de- 
posited in the Capuchin Convent. 

Thus, after four years' arduous toil, the house in Germany 
had to be given up : but F. Clement had sown the seed : the 
Congregation had become known to and loved by the people: 
faith had been revived in thousands of souls, and he had had 
the consolation of forming a number of apostolic men as his 
disciples, who, later on, were to do much for the glory of 
God and the good of souls. 

We will only say two or three words here of some of the 
fathers he had thus gathered together. 

The first, F. Martin Stark, was his secretary and insepa- 
rable companion. After F. Clement's death, he became the 
first Recter of the Vienna House, and in 1846, was sent 
to America to consolidate the Congregation there. 

Another favourite disciple was F. Joseph Forthuber, called 
by F. Clement "The good Joseph", destined to be Superior 
of the Bucharest mission. Then there was F. John Kal- 
tenbach, a man of extraordinary piety and insatiable in 
good works : F. Joseph Hofbauer, the first priest who joined 
the Congregation in Germany: F. Martin Schollhom, Rector 
of the first French House of the order : F. John Sabelli, who, 
in 1822, was made secretary to the Father General and was 
the Confessor of Maria Teresa, Queen of Naples: F. Antony 
Egle whose labours were chiefly in Switzerland ; F. Sebastian 
Heberle and F. Bonaventura Stoll who became excellent mis- 
sioners and zealous confessors. But of all these, none was 



104 The Redemptorists in Coire. 

more esteemed by F. Clement than Father Louis Czech, the 
pearl of the Babenhausen students, who won all hearts by 
his sweetness and prudence. He was still alive when the 
cause of F. Clement's beatification was brought forward in 
1864, and was invaluable as a witness of his holy life in com- 
munity at Warsaw and in Germany. Devoted to our Lady 
he died on the Feast of the Immaculate conception in 1868, 
being 79 years old. 

In addition to these, there were many other fervent dis- 
ciples of F. Clement whom he imbued with his own spirit, 
although it was given to him only to sow the seed in tears 
which was afterwards to bear such abundant fruit: "Euntes 
ibant etjlebant, mittentes semina sua". 125. Psalm. 

CHAPTER XV. 

The Redemptorists in Coire. Their troubles and persecu- 
tions. Driven from thence, they take refuge in the Valats. 

[1807.] 

WE have seen that F. Passerat, who had obtained the 
acceptance of his Congregation by the Bishop's Council at 
Coire, was only waiting for the consent of Father Cle- 
ment, which the latter hastened to send to the Vicariate in 
the following terms : "Your Reverence has had the great 
kindness to promise to the Father Rector Passerat, a tem- 
porary refuge for his exiled Fathers from Babenhausen. 

In your obliging letter of the 5 th of November, of which 
the Rector sent me a copy, I see with great pleasure that 
you have deigned to offer us the use of the Convent of St. 
Luke for the space of half a year or more. On this occasion, 
I wish to fulfil my first duty by thanking you with all my 
heart for this act of truly Christian Charity, which has 
relieved me from a great load of anxiety. May the Good 
Jesus hear my prayers and be Himself your eternal reward. 



The Redemptorists in Coire. 105 

I hope that our Congregation, by the grace of God will give 
no displeasure to the Bishop's Council, since my earnest 
wish is to give all its labours for the benefit of the Diocese, 
for the glory of God and the good of souls : and that, not 
for a year only but for ever. 

If the Diocese should desire to establish a seminary for 
the formation and education of priests, our Congregation 
would be most happy to undertake it at St. Luke's and to 
train the students in accordance with the teaching of the 
Church. 

As to the maintenance of its members, that will be no 
burden upon any one : for by the conditions of our consti- 
tution, we are forbidden to beg. As to the maintenance 
of the students, we leave that to the wise decisions of the 
Diocesan Chapter. 

I beg leave to assure your Reverence that the main 
object of our institution is to be in no one's way: but to 
strive, on the contrary, to be of all the use we possibly can 
and to edify the people in word, deed and intention. 

Our house in Warsaw, called St. Bennone, which is now 
in the 20 th year of its existence, has founded an Orphanage 
containing 40 boys; a male school of five classes; a female 
orphanage ; and a large public Poor School, where instruc- 
tion is given gratuitously to all. These different works 
have been founded one by one almost imperceptibly and 
have been maintained by the mercy of Divine Providence, 
which never fails to assist men of good will who correspond 
with His grace. Only in case of extreme necessity does our 
rule permit us to make known our need to certain persons : 
but habitual quetes are forbidden, our holy founder being 
convinced of the danger attending mendicant orders, from 
the disorder which arises, in consequence, in community 
life. I hereby give the Father Rector Passerat, all necessary 
faculties for the acceptance of the Convent of St. Luke and 
for all the business which may have to be transacted with 



106 The Redemptorists in Coire. 

the Bishop's Council, as also for the erection of the semi- 
nary if desired. And all that he shall have settled and 
decreed I shall consider as having "been done by myself; as 
I cannot be present and as I have the fullest confidence in 
the ability and capacity of the Rector regarding the matters 
in hand. In conclusion, I beg instantly to recommend this 
affair to your Reverence, so that if it be God's will, (as I 
cannot doubt) it may be speedily settled for the glory of 
God and the prosperity of Holy Church. May St. Charles, 
who is the patron of this Diocese, bless your zeal for this 
good work. 

I remain, with respectful veneration 

your Reverence's devoted and obliged servant 
John Clement Mary Hofbauer 
Vicar General of the Cong, of SS. Red. 

This letter shows us all F. Clement's gratitude to his bene- 
factors, his love for his brethren, his zeal for the glory 
of God and above all, his disinterestedness and strong faith 
in God's Providence. Like another St. Cajetan, he trusted 
in God without seeking human aid and only accepted spon- 
taneous offers of charity. Yet Coire was a small town, the 
inhabitants of which were mainly protestants, and from 
whom, therefore, small help could be expected. But he 
never lost his hope. How admirable is our Lord in His 
servants ! 

For a letter to reach Coire from Warsaw in those days 
and especially in the winter season took a long time. But 
at last it arrived and the Convent of St. Luke was at once 
given over to the Redemptorists. On the 1 9 th of February 
1809, the last of the Babenhausen Fathers arrived at 
Coire. In all, they consisted of eight Fathers, five clerics and 
four laybrothers. Only a portion of them could live in the 
Convent : the rest took a house in the town. Their poverty 
was very great : the few bits of furniture they could bring 
from Babenhausen only fitted up two or three rooms and 



The Redemptorists in Coire. 107 

for want of beds, half of them had to sleep on a board 
wrapped up in their cloaks. The spring was bitterly cold : 
they had hardly any wood : and the only stove they had, burnt 
so badly that it only served to prevent their actually freez- 
ing and was not able to warm any of them. They had an 
equal scarcity of food: and that consisted generally of a 
soup of hot water and potatoes and a dish of milk. But as 
they were filled with the spirit of mortification which F. 
Clement had so carefully instilled into them by his own 
example, they were all happy and contented and began 
instantly to preach and to hear confessions. Their simple 
and practical expositions of the Word of God produced at 
once a most favourable impression and their church was 
soon crowded not only by Catholics but by Protestants and 
even by Calvinist Ministers. 

Hence the Devil, foreseeing their success, determined to 
raise a fresh tempest against them. They had hardly settled 
in Coire, w T hen there came a letter from Ulm from their 
old enemy. Baron von Leiden, addressed to the Governor of 
the Grisons, in which he stated that, for grave reasons, the 
King of Bavaria had been compelled to exile the Redemp- 
torists from his realm : and therefore that if the Governor 
of the Grisons permitted them to settle in their Canton, he 
must take care that they did not draw near the Bavarian 
frontier* The Governor answered that the affair would be 
referred to the Council and that in the meanwhile he would 
take all the required measures of precaution. He further 
begged to know for what reason the Bavarian Government 
had exiled these religious? 

On the 25 th of February the Council communicated this 
despatch to the Coire Municipality, inviting them to make 
further enquiries regarding the Redemptorists. F. Passerat 



* Vorarlberg and the Tyrol then formed a part of the Kingdom of Ba- 
varia. — 



108 The Redemptorists in Coire. 

was consequently summoned immediately before the Muni- 
cipality, where he went, accompanied by F. Joseph Hof- 
bauer. He was questioned as to the number of his subjects, 
the names and nationality of each and on various other 
points : and he was severely reproved for having established 
himself at St. Luke's without the consent of the Civil 
Authorities. To this F. Passerat did not answer, leaving it 
to the Bishop to justify himself, as he had an undoubted 
right to call in the assistance of any priests he chose into 
his Diocese, without consulting any civil authority. The 
Fathers, however, were courteously treated by the Council 
who permitted them to remain at St. Luke's and did not 
prohibit their receiving any fresh members. Hence Joseph 
Forthuber was soon after admitted into the Congregation. 

On the 4 th of March, however, the municipality wrote to 
the Vicar General expressing their surprise that he had 
allowed the Redemptorists to establish themselves in Coire 
without consulting the City whose territorial rights were 
thereby infringed. This the Vicar General flatly denied, 
asserting that they had only taken the place of the Pre- 
monstratensians, who had never required the permission of 
the State to occupy St. Luke's: and that the continuance of 
Divine Worship in that Convent depended solely on the 
Bishop and his Council. As to the questions of nomination 
and investiture he would not enter into them, as the Convent 
was ecclesiastical property and consequently Catholic, 
although situated on City ground. However as, two days 
later, a public Commission of the State was to meet in Coire 
to discuss the question of the Redemptorists, the Vicar 
General wrote to the Syndic, Rudolph of Salis-Soglio , to 
recommend their cause, and the Catholic members of the 
Commission drew up a collective statement justifying the 
admission of the Redemptorists. But notwithstanding this 
strong recommendation and the Catholic protest, the Com- 
mission decreed their expulsion; and that in spite of the 



The Redemptorists in Coire. 109 

Syndic: the Protestant members of the Commission pre- 
tending to refute the reasoning of their Catholic Colleagues. 
The Bishop, they said, might certainly call simple priests 
into his Diocese, but not a Congregation and especially not 
the Redemptorists, whose sojourn in Coire would involve 
them in grave difficulties with the Bavarian Government : 
and all the more, because they came from Prussian Poland 
where even the Jesuits were tolerated. 

On the same day (12 th of March) the Catholic members 
of the Commission demanded that the execution of the De- 
cree should be postponed till confirmed by the Great Coun- 
cil. But all their efforts were fruitless : and the Redemptor- 
ists received notice to quit the Canton in eight days unless 
they wished to be expelled by force. 

The notice of this cruel measure produced great irritation 
in the minds of the Catholic population especially in the 
neighbouring Commune of Ems, where the Fathers had 
often gone to exercise their ministry. The inhabitants rose 
and resolved to prevent the execution of the Decree by 
force of arms, imploring the Fathers to take refuge with 
them, as they would know how to defend them. But neither 
the Vicar General nor the Redemptorists would hear of any 
armed intervention. However, this energetic movement 
on the part of the Catholics produced a certain effect. The 
unjust decree was not carried out at that time; and on the 
19 th of March the Syndic wrote to F. Passerat that he and 
his Fathers could remain, at any rate, till after Easter. Two 
days later, he wrote to the Vicar General saying that the 
Redemptorists would be tolerated in the Canton provided 
they would consent to separate themselves. 

On the 20 th of March arrived the answer from the Bava- 
rian Government to the Council of Coire, signed by Baron 
von Lerchenfeld. In this despatch it was stated that the 
Redemptorists had been expelled as a useless corporation 
contrary to the maxims of the Government as regarded 



110 The Redemptorists driven from Coire, 

monastic orders: that their preaching was contrary to the 
meek and humble spirit of Christianity : and that they were 
suspected of having provoked the resistance to the military 
levies. Such accusations were only to the honour of the 
Redemptorists, for certainly their maxims were very different 
from those of the Bavarian Government , who had acted in 
defiance of all right and justice and arbitrarily suppressed 
all the monasteries in the Kingdom. This government, in 
fact, persecuted the Church and all religious institutions, 
while the Redemptorists stood up for all sacred rights. 
The preaching of these Fathers naturally displeased the 
Freemasons and the pretended "Illuminated" members of 
the Government, whose only aim was to destroy the Ca- 
tholic Faith. As for all the alledged "suspicions" regarding the 
levies, it is useless to add more than that Baron von Leiden 
himself had owned that it was a pure calumny. 

On Easter Day, F. Passerat and his brethren ran the 
risk of being forcibly expelled from St. Luke's : but the Syn- 
dic averted the fatal blow. However two days later, an 
order appeared dissolving the Community and dispersing 
its members. The Syndic however, gave leave to the sick 
to remain in the house and look after their poor furniture. 
In three days, the Fathers were dispersed as Chaplains in 
different parishes in the neighbourhood of the town. On the 
1 st of May the Grand Council of the Grisons was assembled 
and the question of the Redemptorists was again brought 
forward. Triumphant answers to the accusations brought 
against them were made by several eminent persons espe- 
cially by the Prefect Vieli, who, fearing a hostile decision, 
suggested that the whole matter should be referred to the 
General Diet. But the Bavarian Government had written 
to Reinard , the Swiss President, to warn the Governor of 
the Grisons against any measure in favour of the Redemp- 
torists. The result was that the decree of expulsion was 
confirmed and they were forbidden to reside any longer in 



take Refuge in the Valais. Ill 

the Canton. Thus the Grand Council yielded to the unjust 
pressure put upon them by the Bavarian Government, 
which, having taken possession of Vorarlberg and the Tyrol, 
tried to destroy all ecclesiastical institutions in these coun- 
tries. But the noble Tyrolese people rose as one man 
against these enemies of their Faith and in the end, the 
Bavarian Government was shamefully defeated and com- 
pelled to yield. 

On the 2 3 rd of May the Governor of the Grisons commu- 
nicated the fatal decision of the Grand Council to the Vicar 
General of Coire. The Vicar General referred him to the 
Prince Bishop, then residing at Meran in the Tyrol, adding 
that the Catholics had implored his mediation and begged 
that the matter might be referred to the Federal Diet. 

All this time, poor F. Passerat was in the greatest anxiety : 
not knowing where to turn for refuge. The Vicar General 
had given him a magnificent testimonial in which he stated 
that "The Redemptorists had edified the whole country by 
their exemplary lives : that they had shown the most de- 
voted zeal in the salvation of souls and by their readiness 
in helping every one with their gratuitous services". He 
gave them letters of recommendation also to the Prince 
Bishop of Sion, Joseph Antony von Blatter, whom he thought 
would be prepared to give them an asylum. 

With these documents in hand, and trusting in Divine 
Providence, F. Passerat started on the 25 th of May (ac- 
companied by F. Casimir Langanki) for the Valais, climb- 
ing .over the highest mountains by the most dangerous 
paths. Arrived at Vissach , they were warmly received by 
the Parish Priest, Adrian von Curten, whose parishioners 
came forward at once with offers to receive the Redemptor- 
ists and give them a house. The Bishop was equally pro- 
pitious. 

During this time, the Catholics of Coire had appealed to 
the Federal Diet assembled at Zurich to intreat that the 



112 The Redemptorists driven from Coire. 

Redemptorists might remain in their Canton. But the Diet 
refused to entertain the question, saying it was not a 
general but a cantonal one, and the Bavarian Government, 
who had sworn death to the congregation, were even more 
enraged at the dispersion of the Fathers in different houses, 
as thereby their influence was only increased ; and declared 
it would be better they should be once more reunited in 
Coire , provided they were forhidden to exercise their ministry. 
Father Passerat, having left F. Langanki at Vissach, came 
back alone to Coire with the joyful news 'that a house was 
guaranteed to the congregation. And on the 8 th of July, he 
sent Fathers Francis Hofbauer and Sabelli to begin the new 
Foundation. The rest celebrated solemnly at St. Luke's for 
the last time the Feast of our Lady of Mount Carmel and 
of our Holy Redeemer. 

If Father Clement had been rejoiced at the foundation of 
Coire, we may imagine his disappointment and distress at 
the result of the persecution they had endured. He wrote 
two letters to thank the Vicar General for his protection 
of their house which we will give in extenso. 

In that of the 6 th of July 1807 he writes : "O ! how diffi- 
cult it is in these days for our Lord's workmen to labour in 
His Vineyard! If God does not bless the anxious care which 
your Reverence has shown on our behalf, I fear that the 
enemy of souls will again hinder the sowing of the seed by 
our poor Congregation ; although that seed promised to bring 
forth such abundant fruit. But, I will not cease to ask 
of the Most High, through his great mercy, to remove all ob- 
stacles if it be His holy will. May God bless your Reverence 
for the protection you have granted to our brethren!. I 
humbly beg of you to direct them, in this difficult mo- 
ment, by your wise counsels. I trust that all the subjects of 
our Congregation will have always at heart the glory of 
God and the good of their neighbours : and that their con- 
duct will be such as to give no cause of complaint to any 



The Redemptorists driven from Coire. 113 

one. If they should no longer have the good fortune to be 
under your orders, I beg of you to forward to them the en- 
closed letter". 

On the 1 8 th of July he writes again : " Convinced of the 
good will and kindness of your Reverence , I venture once 
more to trouble you with a few lines. I was very much 
touched by a letter I have received from my spiritual sons 
saying that had it not been for your energetic protection, 
they would have been innocent victims of the persecution 
now raging against them. My sorrow has been greatly re- 
lieved by this announcement ; and I hope that He in accord- 
ance with Whose Holy Will we are striving to walk, will 
direct all things to His greater glory. I can do nothing 
further than instantly pray to our Lord to fill you more and 
more with his love and to grant you health and strength 
to labour for Him. I shall be always happy to hear that 
my persecuted sons are promoting the honour of God and 
the salvation of souls under your Reverence's prudent guid- 
ance. 

With profound veneration I commend your Reverence to 
the protection of the most High; and recommending myself 
to your fervent prayers, I shall never cease to be your Rev- 
erence's unworthy but grateful servant 

Clement Mary Hofbauer 
Vicar General of Cong. S. S. Red. 

On the 5 th of August the sad news reached Coire, that, in 
the brief space of ten days, three of the Fathers had died in 
Warsaw, Father Hausner, Vannelet, and Hiibl ; under which 
sad circumstances, F. Langanki with brother Norbert Spitz- 
nagel were recalled to Warsaw. 

All this time, the poor Redemptorist Fathers continued 
to be an eyesore to the Protestants and Free-masons by 
whom they were surrounded, and the Diet having decided 
that it was a Cantonal business, the Governor of the Grisons 
renewed his orders to the Vicar General to dismiss them at 



114 The Redemplorists driven from Coire. 

once, adducing as a reason that F. Passerat had written to 
his Superior at Warsaw complaining of the conduct of the 
Bavarian Government. This the Vicar General, after con- 
ferring with F. Passerat, emphatically denied : and he like- 
wise intreated the Governor to defer their expulsion, at 
any rate, till the winter was over. But the Governor was in- 
exorable and would have driven them out by force had they 
not spontaneously departed. In fact, F. Passerat, feeling that 
all reasoning was worse than useless , had already sent off 
his last Fathers and students to Lucerne, which they reached 
towards the end of November ; he having certain clerics who 
were to be ordained by the Nunzio there. After winding up 
all their affairs at Coire, he rejoined his spiritual children 
at Lucerne, and soon after undertook with them the journey 
to their new home in the Valais. 

This journey has remained a memorable one in the Annals 
of the Congregation, not only from its extreme difficulties, 
and dangers, but also as a manifest proof of the special pro- 
tection of God towards His faithful and persecuted servants. 

To arrive at the Valais, it was necessary to cross a high 
mountain called the Grimsel. F. Passerat with eight of his 
companions, principally students, undertook this ascent in 
the middle of December, a proceeding which proved an ex- 
ceptional courage and faith in God. The beginning was 
practicable enough : but as they went on, the depth of snow 
rendered their progress almost impossible. The evening of 
the first day they arrived more than half frozen and thor- 
oughly exhausted at a wayside inn where they were to halt 
for the night. A violent hurricane came on which heaped 
up the snow on their path to an extraordinary height. The 
posts which should have indicated the right road were all 
buried: while a whirlwind of snow blinded our poor tra- 
vellers and increased their peril, as they sunk up to their 
knees at every step. Their guides, who were entirely be- 
wildered and did not know which road to take, flatly refused 



The Redemptorists driven from Coire. 115 

to go any further. In this emergency F. Passerat suddenly 
exclained: "My sons! fall upon ycur knees. Prayer alone can 
save us!" All knelt down in the snow and with outstretched 
arms repeated five Paters and Aves. The two Protestant 
guides were so struck at their faith, that one of them cried 
out : "Forward ! ! When men pray like that, there is nothing 
to fear." And this man put himself at the head of the 
little band, dashed through the snow which came up to his 
waist, and discovered the right road, which brought them, 
though in a terribly exhausted state, to Obergestellen , the 
first village in the Valais. Our Lord having thus preserved 
His servants from such great perils, provided them also with 
the necessary restoratives. When they arrived at the inn 
they found a newly married couple who were holding a nup- 
tial. Feast. Being good and earnest Catholics, they were at 
once deeply interested in the condition of our poor travellers 
and considered themselves most highly honoured to have 
such holy Religious as their guests. They received them 
accordingly with every demonstration of charity and affec- 
tion and treated them most loyally to the best the house 
could produce. F. Passerat and his companions accepted 
with gratitude this unexpected kindness which only the 
more confirmed their confidence in God. Rested, refreshed 
and well fed, they continued their journey and on the 30 tlx 
of December 1807 arrived safely at Vissach. 

In the mean while, the Bavarian Government in its blind 
rage, had expelled by force the Bishop of Coire from the 
Tyrol, of which the western portion had unfortunately fallen 
under their temporary jurisdiction, and without asking the 
leave of the Holy See, they ordered that the Diocese should 
henceforth be under obedience to the Bishop of Augsburg 
instead of Coire. The Professors of the Seminary at Meran, 
not choosing to submit to so schismatical a proceeding, were 
sent into Switzerland and, followed by the students, took up 
their residence at St. Luke's, so that a few days after the 



116 F. Clement an Example of all religious 

departure of the Redemptorists, the Diocesan Seminary was 
established there. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

Father Clement an example oe all religious and domestic 
virtues to his brethren. 

IT is time now to return to the subject of our biography 
and to consider how it was that in spite of such continual 
trials and persecutions, he was able to effect so much for the 
glory of God and the good of souls. 

Let us cast a glance at F. Clement in his own room at St. 
Bennone, where, through a little window, he could look 
down upon the Blessed Sacrament. At this window he 
passed long hours in loving colloquies with our Blessed Lord. 
Whom he contemplated, and adored and loved and consulted 
in all the difficulties of his life. Here he prepared the ser- 
mons which so touched the hearts of his hearers : here he 
found light in his doubts, consolation in adversity, courage 
in persecution and fire to kindle his zeal for God's service. 
It is not wonderful then , that when speaking of Jesus in 
the Blessed Sacrament he seemed inflamed with love, and 
that when offering the Holy Sacrifice he was often wrapt in 
ecstasy ; while after Holy Communion abundant tears flowed 
down his cheeks. Everything in this little room was simple 
and poor ; there was nothing ornamental whatever. Every- 
where Evangelical poverty made itself felt , which F. Cle- 
ment looked upon as the very foundation of the spiritual 
life. When, in the beginning of their foundations, at War- 
saw and elsewhere, the absolute necessaries of life were want- 
ing, F. Clement was never disturbed or put out; but always 
cheery and merry over their privations, thus encouraging 
the others to bear them bravely; and declaring that such 
poverty was, in reality, a rich treasure. And when the misery 



and domestic Virtues to his Brethren. 117 

ceased and comparative comfort supervened, he still never 
lost sight of this principle and was as moderate in prosperity 
as he had been gay in the time of need. 

He guarded the rule in this respect with the greatest vigi- 
lance and never tolerated any infringement of it either in 
himself or others. On one occasion, one of the Fathers, from 
inadvertence, had lined his cloak with silk. F. Clement dis- 
covered it and insisted on the lining being taken out, while 
he reproved him sharply for thus breaking the rule of po- 
verty. In the same way, being once given a silk handker- 
chief to cure a bad sorethroat, he could not be induced to 
wear it, though he gratefully accepted a woollen one in its 
place. "It is quite impossible", deposed the Jesuit Father 
Frederick Rinn , "to be poorer than Father Clement in fact 
and deed. He called poverty the first Beatitude; and the 
only path pointed out to us by Christ, from his cradle in 
the stable to his nakedness on the Cross and His deposition 
in a sepulchre intended for another." So greatly did he 
esteem Religious poverty and an entire detachment from 
all earthly possessions, that he could not bear to hear any 
one talk with admiration of any worldly article. One of 
his Fathers was describing some beautiful jewels he had 
seen which had been put into his hands. F. Clement inter- 
rupted him by saying: "And you and I have had in our 
hands this very morning the inestimable presence of Our 
Lord in the Blessed Sacrament ! how can you glory then in 
having handled what is, after all, but dust and ashes T 

In proof of his zeal for the exact observance of poverty in 
the Congregation, Ave will mention another fact. In the Gen- 
eral Chapter held at Nocera dei Pagani in 1802, a mitiga- 
tion in the rule on this head was proposed and carried. No 
sooner had F. Clement heard of it, than he wrote by F. 
Thaddeus to the Father General, expressing his sorrow at 
the change and his fears of the result. He wrote : " I have 
heard with horror that, in future, Rectors will be permitted 



118 F. Clement an Example of all religious 

to keep a chest in which their subjects may deposit their 
money. Such a regulation was unknown to our Congrega- 
tion in the Pontifical states and is destructive of the vow of 
poverty. It would deal a deadly blow to the spirit of our 
Institute ; for such a clause would open the door to innume- 
rable abuses." Our Lord, however, consoled the heart of 
His faithful servant by not permitting that this new statute 
should be approved of by the Holy See, and thus the wishes 
of the holy founder of the Congregation were not infringed 
by the proposed relaxation of the rule. 

Even more fondly than poverty, however, did F. Clement, 
esteem and love the virtue of purity, which he justly con- 
sidered as the very essence of sacerdotal life. This precious 
jewel was guarded by him with jealous care. His grave and 
modest exterior, his pure and careful words, his very move- 
ments, which, without affectation or singularity were always 
regulated on the same principle, caused an eye-witness to 
exclaim: "His whole person shines with angelic purity, so 
that his very look inspires chaste thoughts." 

In a general way, he kept his eyes cast down, so that his 
intimate friends declared they never knew their colour. He 
was even more cautious and reserved with women, although 
he was never uncourteous or uncivil. His intercourse with 
them was generally serious and brief: and people used to 
declare that he knew them by their voices more than by 
their faces. In the tribunal of Penance he was very sparing 
in his questions as to certain sins and only listened to what 
was absolutely necessary for the integrity of the confession. 
And as he knew that purity was a celestial gift more than 
a virtue acquired by laborious exercise, he continually and 
fervently recommended himself to God and to His Imma- 
culate mother ; and never ceased to strengthen his petitions 
by fasts and penances and by bearing patiently the many 
pains and discomforts which are the portion of almost every 
one in this life at one time or the other. He showed the 



and domestic Virtues to his Brethren. 119 

same extreme anxiety to infuse this love of chastity into the 
minds of his students, imploring them never to cease their 
watchfulness over themselves and their natural affections. 

When asked how they were to deal with women? he used 
to reply : "Recommend all good women to our Lord": mean- 
ing, "Think of them in your prayers, but not otherwise". 
He often quoted the example of the holy Job, who had made 
a compact with his eyes never to think of a virgin : and he 
continually warned his young priests of the great dangers 
they might run from keeping up intimacies with the other 
sex. "Women remain always women", he would say, "and 
unless they have overcome their natural tendencies, like 
St. Teresa and other Saints, they are always dangerous 
to us". 

The third stone in religious perfection F. Clement would 
call obedience. It was true that he was Superior from the 
time he left Rome till his death; but with what humility 
and veneration did he write to the Father-General ! Every 
word revealed the true spirit of a son, nor can we find any 
where a trace of independence, of self-will, or of contra- 
diction. In whatever work he undertook , he never stirred 
without consulting his superiors, to assure- himself that he 
was thereby following the Divine Will: nor did he ever 
begin any important business without first seeking the ap- 
proval of the F. General and the Papal Nunzio. 

To know the spirit of obedience existing in a Religious, 
there is no better test than to watch how he observes the 
rule of his order: and of this F. Clement was a notable 
example. One of his sous, who had continual opportunities 
of watching him at Warsaw and elsewhere, wrote "that even 
in the most minute things, F. Clement's humble obedience 
to the rules of the congregation was most remarkable, so 
that no one could complain if he exacted the same from his 
subjects. He was always the first at all community exer- 
cises, especially in the morning and never allowed fatigue 



1 20 F. Clement an Example of all religious 

or overwhelming occupations of other kinds, to interfere 
with his regular observance of the rule; in fact he would 
never make exceptions for himself; but behaved as if he 
were the lowest and youngest of the community. In his 
paternal admonitions and fervent exhortations, he dwelt 
often on the importance of this virtue. One day one of his 
Fathers came late to church and gave as his excuse "that 
he had remained to hear another confession". F. Clement 
replied : "What you did in that way, you did for the Devil ;" 
punctuality being one of the points of obedience on which 
he strongly insisted. 

And now, what shall we say of his penances and mortifica- 
tions? The Jesuit Father Sebastian Wittmann writes on this 
head : "F. Clement was a St. John the Baptist in the desert, a 
preacher of penance, both by word and example ; and thus 
converted thousands of sinners and led them in the paths of 
Christian perfection." In truth fasting and abstinence were his 
inseparable companions. In the morning he would be the first 
to rise and begin a day which was always so hard and fatigu- 
ing to his poor body : and at first he never took any thing for 
breakfast, although later he was compelled to take a little 
soup at 10 o'clock, that is, after he had passed many hours in 
ministerial work and hearing confessions etc. He would not 
take a cup of coffee after his mass like the rest ; and as long 
as he remained in Warsaw, he never touched wine. Only 
in his later years was he forced to take a little when he 
came back, tired to death, after his visits to the sick; when 
he would thank God, who, by this gift, recruited his 
strength for fresh work. It was a real marvel to every 
one how, with so little food, which he often took so hur- 
riedly, he could do such an amount of labour. But besides 
his constant mortification as to food and drink, he used 
disciplines, slept on a hard bed and exposed himself to cold 
and heat, wind and rain , snow and hail without seeming- 
even conscious of the state of the weather. He never would 



and domestic Virtues to his Brethren. 121 

use an umbrella till he became an old man, no matter how 
it poured. He always declared that such little mortifications 
were necessary to him; and often encouraged them in his 
disciples, although he would make them act with discretion 
and in proportion to their health and strength. "You see, 
a missioner must be mortified", he would say, "so as to be 
able to bear unexpected fatigues". It always pleased him 
when his young students, although not of an age to fast, would 
deprive themselves of their breakfast on Fast Days to give 
to the poor. However, he was very -careful not to impose 
the same rule on all : and would often say" that what would 
be good for one would be bad for another", especially in 
the matter of corporal penances : and that nothing should 
be done to injure the health or diminish the strength, 
which was so needful for the work of the apostolate. While 
recommending, therefore, great discretion in external mor- 
tifications he laid far greater stress on internal ones, and 
especially on the abnegation of self and fighting vigorously 
against our dominant passions. He would say to his stu- 
dents : "Disciplines and hair-shirts and other instruments of 
penance are not absolutely necessary, nor even difficult, to 
some natures. But the mortification of our own wills, of 
our natural inclinations, and above all, of our pride , is ab- 
solutely necessary and a far more arduous task." 

But some people may ask : "How is it that F. Clement 
with his life of continual prayer, mortification, and toil, 
could speak of himself constantly to his subjects as having 
passions and evil inclinations to fight against?" It is be- 
cause, even in the holiest souls, there is still some vestiges 
of the old Adam, some cause for them to humble themselves 
before God. F. Clement was, by nature, irrascible and vio- 
lent: and this natural irritation would crop up from time 
to time: so that to avoid giving way to it, to conquer any 
outward sign of anger, and to subdue any internal feelings 
of it, was a matter requiring continual watchfulness and 



122 F. Clement an Example of all religious 

.struggle. Looking at this defect with an eye of faith he 
would sometimes say: "I thank God that He has left me 
this natural irritability, which helps me to practise humil- 
ity and be patient with others : besides preserving me from 
pride." 

With the most persevering- energy he would fight against 
this unhappy inclination and receive in silence the gravest 
injuries, so that one of his companions wrote: "The most 
unjust treatment did not disturb his external tranquillity 
and sweetness, which were the honest expression of his heart. 
It is true that sometimes the struggle would be seen in his 
face ; but a single look upwards would restore his habitual 
calm". If however, he did not succeed in conquering him- 
self at once, an act of humility and contrition instantly 
followed and gave him fresh wings to renew the combat. 
In addition to the virtues of his private character we must 
add a word of the extraordinary talent God had given him 
for the office of Superior, he being able to govern with such 
success communities composed of such different elements, 
hostile nationalities, and directly opposite tastes, habits and 
inclinations. Whoever has lived in similar communities will 
know well the difficulties of government in such cases. But 
this great servant of God had the secret of knowing how to 
guide and direct each soul so as to contribute to his own 
sanctification and the good of the community. Whether in 
prosperity or adversity, all came to him for direction and 
counsel, and no one went away dissatisfied or discouraged: 
for his words were full of Divine Wisdom and uttered with 
such paternal kindness and sweetness that even when they 
were bitter to the inclination they touched the heart and 
inclined each to follow the advice given. His wonderful 
humility made him abstain from ever making his authority 
painfully [felt : nor was he ever imperious in his orders. 
Without distinction of persons, he would listen to the hum- 
blest lay-brother with the same patience, sweetness and cha- 



and domestic Virtues to his Brethren. 123 

rity that he would show to his best Fathers. He was always 
at the service of any one of his subjects and never disdained 
the humblest offices ; as, for instance, helping the cook if 
inefficient and teaching him how to prepare the food, or 
anything else. His sweetness and charity as Superior did 
not however, prevent his being firm and even severe when 
necessary. He loved his spiritual sons too well to pass over 
things which really required correction : but he knew how 
to choose the moment to prove their spirit. He watched 
especially over the finest characters amongst them, encour- 
aging them to practise heroic virtues. This was especially 
the case with F. Passerat, whose singular generosity of spirit 
was frequently put to the proof by his wise and loving 
Superior, who was determined that he should attain to un- 
common perfection and not be content with the beaten 
track. And the result justified his fondest expectations. 
With weaker natures, however, he was firm though patient. 
He was very fond of F. Martin Stark, who often accom- 
panied him on his travels : but having discovered a little 
boyish vanity in him, he continually mortified him, in imi- 
tation of St. Philip Neri ; one day sending him to fetch water 
at a distant well : or to go and buy milk in a public square : 
or other similar humiliations. In the same way he corrected 
his inclination to elegance in his dress. With all that, he 
was wonderfully considerate of people's feelings and if ever 
he had exceeded in finding fault in any way, he would 
hasten to remedy it for fear of wounding personal suscepti- 
bilities. "One day" relates a student of his, "I received a re- 
proof from him which, with my natural sensitiveness, I felt 
bitterly and thought was unnecessarily severe. I went to 
my own room, but a minute or two later, he came in, with 
a piece of music in his hand and said to me : " You wanted 
to have this hymn, did you not? Let us try it together": 
and forthwith he began : 

"Or Maria salutero" "A suoi piedi nrinchinero &c." I re- 



124 From 1806 to 1807. 

mained quite confused at this proof of his sweetness and 
gentleness, which he evidently did because he feared he had 
hurt me by speaking too strongly." 

Happy indeed were those who had such a Superior over 
them! 

Another remarkable characteristic in Father Clement 
was, his devotion to the Congregation. Father Tannoia 
wrote: "What his devotion was to his Order and what care 
he took to preserve its spirit, I cannot find words to express ! 
Yet no one knows what he went through and suffered in 
his efforts to establish it in different countries. And this 
tender love he transmitted to his spiritual sons: and the 
result was that each one of them was ready to sacrifice 
everything and even life itself, rather than lose his voca- 
tion." 

Another proof of the affection he bore for the Congrega- 
tion was given by F. Clement in his intense anxiety for the 
beatification of St. Alphonsus. Not only did he carefully 
search for every single circumstance which would help the 
cause, but when it was solemnly proclaimed, he gave a 
large sum out of his poverty to enhance the splendour of 
the function. 

The intense love he bore to the congregation will give us 
a measure of his grief at the disastrous events and perse- 
cutions we have to record regarding his new foundations. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Great anxiety as regarded the house at Warsaw. The 
death of f. thaddeus htjbl. 

[From 1806 to 1807.] 

WHILST F. Clement was using every means to plant 
his Congregation firmly in Germany, his enemies combined 
to destroy it in Poland. Under the Prussian Government 



From 1S06 to 1801. 125 

the influence of the Socialist and Fre-mason sects increased 
daily. Guided by a certain instinct, they felt that of all 
strongholds of religion and morals, St. Bennone was the 
most to be dreaded : and therefore they determined to com- 
bine for its destruction. Their first method was by various 
calumnies to irritate the Government against the Congre- 
gation : and although these allegations were judicially dis- 
proved and no pretext was found for any proceedings to 
be taken against them, the Government, in order to curry 
favour with the Free-masons, directed that the church should 
be closed an hour earlier than usual. But this did not 
satisfy the sects, who trumped up a variety of fresh accusa- 
tions against the Fathers : so that the King, Frederick Wil- 
liam the 3 rd , ordered that the Superior of St. Bennone 
should be sent for to Berlin to answer the charges brought 
against them. 

F. Thaddeus Hiibl was at that time Rector and being 
very ill, he sent his Father Minister, Iesterheim to defend 
the Congregation, ' who was furnished with the highest re- 
commendations from all the principal inhabitants of Warsaw. 
The different points of accusation were read out to him, 
and he, with perfect calm and tranquillity, begged the Court 
to read the documents he had brought with him and which 
contained the most complete justification on all the counts 
which had been brought forward. The judges were thor- 
oughly satisfied, and F. Iestersheim was received with 
marked kindness by the king and his ministers, who sent 
him back in peace to Warsaw, with orders to the authorities 
there to watch over the safety and honour of the Redemp- 
torist Fathers, and not to molest them any more. This happy 
result was due partly to the absurdity of the accusations 
and partly to the threatened war with Napoleon, when it 
behoved all nations to be united among themselves. 

The war fell indeed heavily upon Prussia. Bonaparte's 
Generals, Murat and Davoust, entered Warsaw with their 



126 From 1806 to 1807. 

victorious troops on the 13 th of November 1806, and on the 
1 9 th of the following month Napoleon himself made a solemn 
entry into the capital of Poland. By the treaty of Tilsit 
(9 th of July 1807) Poland was taken away from Prussia and 
made into a separate Grand Duchy under the King of Saxony, 
Frederick Augustus, a nephew of the late King of Poland, 
Augustus the 2 nd . 

On F. Clement's return to Warsaw in 1806, he found the 
French masters of the city and his poor Fathers in great 
tribulation. It was true that by the Concordat of 1801, the 
Catholic Religion had been reestablished in France. But 
unbelief and hatred of Christianity continued just the same 
and all religious orders suffered endless vexations wher- 
ever the French arms were victorious. It is true that the 
King of Saxony was a good Catholic and personally attached 
to F. Clement and to his Congregation. But as Grand Duke 
of Warsaw, he had scarcely the authority of a prefect, being 
obliged to obey Napoleon's orders in everything. Hence the 
enemies of the Congregation were enchanted at the change 
of Government which they felt, would ensure their victory. 
From this moment, F. Clement and his Fathers were sub- 
jected to every species of insult and ill-usage: so much so 
that he was heard to say later : "That no one could imagine 
what he had suffered in Poland, the whole of which would 
never be known till the day of judgment".* 

During this terrible time, F. Clement was an angel of 
consolation towards - his brethren. Not that he undervalued 

* One of the witnesses in the cause of his beatification relates the 
following: "After the death of F. Clement, a servant of a noble Polish 
family came into the sacristy of the Ursulines in Vienna and seeing there 
a picture of the servant of God exclaimed : 'I knew this holy man well 
and what he suffered in Poland. He was once thrown into a damp and 
subterranean dungeon , where his hands and feet were so tightly bound 
that he could not defend himself from the rats, who ran all over him. 
By the energetic intercession of my Mistress, the Countess, he was, at 
last, set at liberty." This confirms the rumour among the people of the 
tortures and outrages to which F. Clement was subjected in Warsaw. 



From 1806 to 1801. 127 

the greatness of the dangers which surrounded them: but 
his courage and calm only increased in proportion. His 
example and exhortations so raised the spirits of the Com- 
munity that they were ready to meet whatever calamity 
might befall them. And in truth, hell itself seemed unloos- 
ed against the unhappy Fathers. Not content with the most 
hideous calumnies, ribald songs were composed against the 
"Bennonites" as they were nick-named and distributed far and 
wide among the people. In the theatres, they were travestied 
in their religious habits and the most sublime mysteries of 
our holy religion were infamously represented on the 
boards. Those even who came to their church were insulted 
in the public streets. Vile cowards besieged the doors, and 
when any of the Fathers appeared, to visit the sick or per- 
form any other ministerial function, the word was passed 
down the street and a rabble of half drunken men armed 
with sticks and stones would load them with blows and in- 
sults. They had a special spite against F. Blumenauer, 
because by his magnificent preaching, he had converted so 
many people ; so that they threatened to murder him and 
several times came with loaded pistols into the church, but 
did not dare carry out their sacrilegious designs. So grave 
was the danger, however, that it was considered more pru- 
dent for him not to leave the house. In the midst of all 
this persecution, for which they could obtain no redress 
from the authorities, F. Clement remained calm and resign- 
ed and did his best to tranquillise his companions and prevent 
any acts of imprudence or retaliation. One would have 
thought that under such circumstances our Lord would 
have specially consoled His faithful servant. But, in the 
inscrutable decrees of God, He chose this moment to in- 
flict on him the deepest, sorrow. Death carried off his dearest 
friend, F. Thaddeus Hiibl, who for 24 years had shared in 
all his joys and sorrows. He had been his main stay in the 
first start of the Congregation. He had been F, Clement's 



128 Who Father Thaddeus was. 

adviser in the most critical circumstances. In fact, he was 
half of himself, and yet God called upon him to make this 
sacrifice at the very moment when he was most needful and 
when F. Clement was in such grievous want of so tried and 
faithful a friend ! 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

Who Father Thaddeus was. And how he was esteemed 
and revered by all. hls solemn funeral. 

UNTIL his journey to Rome in 1803, F. Thaddeus was 
in delicate health ; but nevertheless he never gave way or 
spared himself in any manner, but laboured incessantly in 
our Lord's Vineyard. Besides his arduous work as Rector 
of St. Bennone, he was continually appealed to by the Arch- 
bishop and the Professors of the seminary to solve difficult 
questions in theology, as every one considered him a 
wise and profound theologian. Endowed with rare talents, 
he had acquired an extraordinary knowledge of the writings 
of the Fathers of the church, of profane and ecclesiastical 
history and of dogmatic and moral theology. He was also 
an indefatigable student. The Archbishop had so high an 
opinion of his science and prudence that he would not give 
faculties for confession to any priest unless previously 
approved of by Father Thaddeus, whom he also compelled 
to act as his Clergy Examiner — an office which he filled 
with scrupulous fidelity and salutary severity. In the latter 
years of his life he rarely preached, not so much on account 
of his continual occupations as from the weakening of his 
physical powers : but he was untireable in his assiduity in 
hearing confessions. He was the Director of people of every 
class ; Prelates, Canons, members of the highest nobility and 
again of the poorest among the peasants. As he spoke and 
understood six different languages his confessional was 



Who Father Thaddeus was. 129 

frequented by all the strangers who passed through Warsaw. 
He resembled F. Clement in many things: and especially 
in the strength of his faith, his zeal for the salvation of 
souls and his sweetness and affability towards every one 
with whom he came in contact. His rare qualities and 
eminent virtue not only won all hearts, but even drew forth 
admiration from the French Authorities ; so that if the im- 
placable enemies of the Congregation did not succeed as 
quickly as they hoped in their iniquitous designs , it was 
mainly owing to the great influence of F. Thaddeus. 

A work of heroic charity was the actual cause of his 
death. In the French army, which at that time occupied 
Poland, there was an Italian Regiment, who from over- 
fatigue and other causes, were mostly in Hospital and ar- 
dently wished for the consolations of their faith. They 
spoke only their native tongue and none of the chaplains of 
the Hospital understood them. The Archbishop wrote to F. 
Thaddeus telling him of this and imploring him to go and 
assist them : and he, though very suffering at the time, at 
once hastened to the hospital and with the greatest charity 
administered the last sacraments to all who needed them. 
His presence softened the last moments of these poor fellows, 
who did not know how to find words to express their gra- 
titude and full of hope and consolation, passed to a better 
life.' They left, however, behind them a sad legacy and that 
was the infection, which he took during his constant attend- 
ance on the dying. In consequence, he was seized with 
malignant Typhus Fever which carried him off after a 1 5 
days illness, borne with admirable resignation and patience. 
On the 4 th of July 1807, this noble soul returned to its 
Creator. Father Clement had never left him during his 
illness and had the melancholy comfort of closing his eyes 
when all was over. This victim of christian charity died 
full of holy consolations and celestial joy; but to his bre- 
thren, his loss was simply an irreparable one ; for so great 



130 Who Father Thaddeus was. 

was his tenderness and solicitude for each of his spiritual 
sons, that F. Clement called him "The mother of the Congre- 
gation'. To Father Clement himself this misfortune was 
the greatest that could have happened to him. In a con- 
ference held shortly after, he exclaimed: "Our last hope is 
gone. God knows what we may yet have to suffer !" Used 
as he was to every description of trial, this blow was the 
heaviest of all. Writing to a friend at Foligno he says : "I 
feel convinced that our beloved F. Thaddeus is already 
triumphing with Christ in Heaven : but I cannot get over 
the immense sorrow which his death has caused me. I am 
doing my utmost to resign myself to God's will and protest 
that I desire nothing but Its accomplishment: but I own 
that, since his death, I have never known a happy hour. 
To him the change is all gain : but our loss is simply irre- 
parable". He then begs his friend to have a mass said 
in the Church of St. Clare of Montefalco on behalf of his 
dear friend. 

On the 9 th of January 1808, writing to F. Blasucci, then 
Superior General, he says: "I find myself pretty well in 
health since the death of our beloved F. Thaddeus : but I 
cannot get over my sadness and sorrow". As long as he 
lived, he entertained the same strong love for this dear 
friend and wore his picture on his breast. Later on, he lost 
this print in Vienna, which was a real grief to him. 

To return to the funeral of F. Thaddeus. No sooner was 
the sad news of his death made known, than all the Catho- 
lics of Warsaw, from the Archbishop downwards, hastened 
to St. Bennone to express their sympathy with F. Clement 
and to do honour to his cherished remains. The Superiors 
of all the other Religious Houses in the town came likewise 
and finding the poor Redemptorist Fathers overwhelmed 
with grief, undertook to make all the necessary preparations 
for the funeral. The Archbishop wishing to show his extra- 
ordinary gratitude and veneration for this model of priests, 



Who Father Thaddeus was. 131 

ordered that, for the three following days, all the bells in 
the town should be tolled; and determined that his obse- 
quies should be attended by all possible pomp. All day long 
the carriages of the Warsaw nobility drove up in succession 
to the door of the house, every one craving leave to look 
once more on the face of their spiritual father and best 
friend. 

The whole of the interior of the church was hung with 
black by the sacristans of the cathedral and the bier of the 
poor Religious was adorned as if it were that of a Bishop or 
a Prince. More than 500 candles, weighing each four or 
five libs, burnt continually round the bier, being brought 
by the faithful from every quarter. The Religious of every 
order joined in singing the office for the Dead in the Re- 
demptorist Church and this pious ceremony went on with- 
out intermission for two days. The mourners who crowded 
the church were of every class, rich and poor, Poles and 
foreigners — all felt that in him they had lost a common 
father. The Secular Clergy joined the regulars and during 
the interminably long procession, all following with lighted 
torches, the finest orchestral music played funeral marches 
which expressed the hearty sorrow shown on every coun- 
tenance. 

This magnificent and gorgeous funeral was entirely 
carried out at the expense and by the spontaneous impulse 
of the people ; for the poor fathers of the Congregation had 
done nothing ; nor contributed in any way to the triumph 
of this their humble though most worthy Superior. 

The holy death of Father Thaddeus was announced to 
F. Passerat and his brethren in Switzerland in a curious 
way. They were all saying their night-prayers together one 
evening in Coire, when suddenly they felt a great shock like 
an earthquake which shook all the windows and a loud noise 
was heard as of something falling, which made them hasten 
to go over the house and see what had happened. But find- 



132 Who Father Thaddeus was. 

ing nothing whatever either broken or displaced, they 
began to think there was something strange and super- 
natural about it, and all the more when they heard that 
precisely a similar sound had been heard by their Fathers 
in another house. They noted down the day and hour in 
both cases, and after some time, the sad letters came from 
Warsaw announcing the death of F. Thaddeus at that very 
moment. In the same way in 1787, the death of St. Al- 
phonsus had been made known to Father Clement and 
Father Thaddeus. 

By the extraordinary honours paid to him, the people of 
Warsaw showed not only their veneration for the departed 
Superior, but also bore witness to their love and devotion to 
the Congregation. All the lies and calumnies and all the in- 
sults and persecutions of their adversaries had not lessened 
the esteem in which they were held by all the right-think- 
ing among the population. The Church of St. Bennone 
was more frequented than ever ; and the number of Com- 
munions in 1807 exceeded a hundred thousand: so that in 
that way, by the goodness of God, F. Clement was a 
little consoled amidst the tribulations and difficulties which 
beset him on all sides. 

In two letters which he wrote on the 9 th of January and 
the 24 th of February 1808 to the Father and Procurator 
General, F. Clement expressed himself as follows : 

rf Our church is almost always full to overflowing. The con- 
fessors of the King and Queen of Saxony who frequent it 
and sometimes sing High Mass there, are quite amazed at 
seeing every mass so crowded and more than a hundred 
persons at Holy Communion at each mass. A great many 
Protestants have likewise been received into the church. 
We have a pious King and a very holy Archbishop. At first 
they had been prejudiced against us : but now they are only 
anxious to confide to our care all the missions in Poland. I 
have given up one house in the neighbourhood of Warsaw 



Letters to the Father General. 133 

hoping to obtain a better one from this new Archbishop. 
The new Vicar General of the Diocese of Warsaw (Gregory 
Zacharyassewicz) is a man full of prudence and zeal, the 
greatest friend of the Congregation and really a true Father 
to us all. The only complaint he makes against us, is, that 
we are not sufficiently numerous. We have now nine no- 
vices and two good clerics. If the Prussians had not so cru- 
elly oppressed us, our numbers would be very much larger. 
It is, however, a perfect miracle, how in these wretched 
times, when the country is so exhausted and ruined, we 
are able, without begging, to maintain so numerous a family, 
being, with our orphans, upwards of 64 persons." In this 
same letter (of 9 th of Jan. 1808) F. Clement reports the work 
of his Congregation to the Superior General and not know- 
ing that his Fathers had been already sent away from Coire 
he writes : 

"In the Canton of the Grisons our Fathers have made 
great progress in virtue and science, and your Reverence 
would certainly allow them to be worthy sons of our holy 
Father, when we consider that in spite of all the hardships 
and persecutions they have undergone, one and all have 
been faithful to the Congregation. God only knows what 
they have had to go through; but everywhere they have 
spread the good odour of their virtue and sanctity. The 
enemy of the human race was quite determined not to allow 
us to found missions in Germany, but nevertheless he was 
the cause of our doing much there. In some places we were 
only allowed to stop a few months: but during that short 
time, there was a most extraordinary change for the better 
in the people, so much so that many fathers of families de- 
clared they did not know their children again. Everywhere 
they introduced the frequent reception of the Sacraments 
and heard innumerable General Confessions. People came 
to our missions from a distance of 50 and even a 100 miles. 
On the mountains and in the vallies of Switzerland as in 



1 34 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw 

Germany, we hear the peasants singing our hymns and 
chaunts. The young Fathers, especially, work perfect mi- 
racles in the way of conversions, and if God will permit the 
foundation in Switzerland to continue, they will convert 
thousands of Protestants." 

Thus, F. Clement in the midst of all his trials, rejoiced in 
the happy result of his labours : while his whole heart and 
soul were bent on the glory of God , the salvation of souls, 
the conversion of sinners and heretics and the propagation 
of his dearly-loved Congregation. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw and the Fathers 
barbarously driven away. 

[1808.] 

THE clouds which hung over the horizon could not in- 
duce F. Clement to slacken in any way his apostolic labours : 
on the contrary, he determined to carry out a new work 
which, at first, he had only vaguely thought of. Feeling 
that not enough had been done for the education of girls in 
Warsaw, he resolved to call in the assistance of the Redemp- 
toristine nuns and in order to obtain the King's consent had 
recourse to the mediation of the Court Confessor. Nor was the 
important work of giving missions in any way neglected, as 
appears by a letter of F. Clement's to the Father General in 
May I SOS : so that the fatal blow found the Fathers ofSt.Ben- 
none in the full fervour of their holy operations; a circum- 
stance which redounded to their glory, to the eternal shame 
of their enemies. On the 1 6 th of April, which was Holy Satur- 
day, the solemn celebration of the Resurrection, according 
to Polish custom, was held in St. Bennone between nine and 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 135 

ten o'clock at night.* During the solemn procession carry- 
ing the Blessed Sacrament round the church, a French of- 
ficer in plain clothes scandalised the people by his indecent 
behaviour with two women, which compelled one of the 
priests to admonish him. The officer was furious and hur- 
ried out to find a companion to avenge, as he pretended, 
this grave insult. And when , after the function was over, 
the people were passing out by the little door near the sa- 
cristy, two men dressed in plain clothes who afterwards 
turned out to be also French officers strove to enter the 
church, and this being difficult owing to the narrowness of 
the corridor and the multitudes who were coming out, they 
forced their way in by blows and violence. Such mad beha- 
viour, as may easily be imagined, produced great confusion 
and indignation among the people, so that the two officers 
were roughly handled by the Poles and driven back outside 
the church. The officers in return wounded and illtreated 
several of the congregation. The confusion momentarily in- 
creased, when a Polish officeal came up and instead of re- 
establishing order, added fuel to the fire by accusing the 
Poles of having insulted the French officers. The Father 
Rector came out of the house to try and quell the disturb- 
ance and reason with the Polish official; but was seized 
by the French officers and loaded with blows and insults. The 
Superior told them that for such unworthy conduct he would 
report them to Marshall Davoust. After this, one of the 
Frenchmen again got into the church to seek the women 
with whom they had previously misbehaved. In the mean 
while, some one had run to the Guard-House to seek the pro- 
tection of the soldiers. But these only came to take parts 
with their officers and forcing their way into the Sacristy, 
drove out the frightened people and illtreated the Fathers 

* The details of this affair are taken from a printed correspondence in 
Polish written in 1816 by Monsg. Ignatius Raczynski, Prince Bishop of 
Gnesnia and Administrator of Warsaw. 



1 36 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw 

there. The Polish officials however, intervened, turned out 
the soldiers, reassured the weeping people and exhorted 
them to go away quietly, while he begged the Fathers to 
close the doors of the church so that no more French people 
could go in. After this, he went with a laybrother to the 
Guard-House in the old city, leaving four soldiers to protect 
the house. Then the Commandant returned with a larger body 
of men, examined the passage and_ the door, went to the F. 
Rector and heard the whole account and reassuring them 
with kind words, left them in peace. The day after Easter, 
the Minister of public worship wrote to the Vice-Adminis- 
trator of the Diocese complaining bitterly of the Fathers for 
their ill-treatment of the French officers and demanding 
that they should be punished. An enquiry was set on foot 
and a statement drawn up in writing of the facts of the case 
which was forwarded to the Minister of public worship by 
the Vice-Administrator on the 1 8 th of April, together with 
a letter in which he set forth the innocence of the Fathers 
in the strongest possible light. 

"These Fathers", he wrote "who would have fallen victims 
to a furious rabble had it not been for the active protection 
of the Commandant, have indeed reason to complain of 
their treatment, although they are unwilling to prosecute 
their offenders. The enclosed accurate statement of what 
happened has been drawn up by them solely at my express 
orders and is confirmed by all impartial witnesses. If 
they came out of their House, it was but to pacify the irri- 
tation of the people and to preach forbearance and peace. 
The absurd accusation of a Redemptorist having fought 
with a French officer, is refuted by the universal testimony 
of all who know the gentleness and sweetness of these 
venerable Fathers, who are models to us all. You may re- 
flect how little fit their accusers are to judge dispassion- 
ately in the matter, they being filled with such bitter pre- 
judice and hatred against them." 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 137 

I can produce as many witnesses as you please who will 
confirm the statement I have now made : and if you thereby 
recognise the innocence of the Fathers, the affair may be 
considered as at an end : inasmuch as they, for the love of 
God, are quite willing to forget the injuries they have re- 
ceived, nor do they exact satisfaction from any one. I beg 
and intreat of you, in the name of all. the Clergy of the 
Diocese, to order that the civil and military authorities may 
prevent that our churches, consecrated to the service of 
Almighty God, should be desecrated by the behaviour of 
persons , who seek solely to gratify their evil passions and 
lustful eyes even in such holy places. If they wish thus to 
indulge in their vices, let it be elsewhere, where they may 
not give scandal to holy and devout persons who frequent 
the church to pray." 

This energetic defence of the Fathers on the part of the 
Vice-Administrator had no good result, although the authori- 
ties were compelled to allow their innocence of the charges 
brought against them. Nor would they examine the pro- 
posed witnesses, as then the odious calumny would have 
been even more flagrantly exposed. But all the papers in 
the Rector's room were seized and ordered to be examined 
by the civil and ecclesiastical authorities. The latter were 
added to try and deceive the people by making them believe 
that there was some blame attached to the Fathers. But 
the Vicar General, seing that he was thus being made an 
accomplice of the persecution, refused to appoint the priest 
proposed by them to make the ecclesiastical enquiry : and 
the papers were consequently examined by the civil authori- 
ties alone , without, however, their being able to find a 
single thing which could criminate the Congregation, whose 
innocence, in consequence, only shone the brighter in the 
eyes of all men. But, like the Fable of the Wolf and the 
Lamb, all this was but a pretext to give an appearance of 
justice to the brutal destruction of the congregation. In 



138 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw 

fact, six weeks before the suppression, a high masonic 
dignitary had said to a priest friend of his, "that the Ben- 
nonites would be very soon driven away from Warsaw". 
The priest replied "that he was sure that the King would 
never consent to the expulsion of a body of men who had 
done and were doing so much good". But the Free-mason 
named a minister, who was a noted infidel, who had im- 
immense power and had resolved on their destruction 
through the influence of Marshall Davoust, and added "that 
the King would be compelled to give his assent to the sen- 
tence". 

It happened exactly as he had foretold. Davoust obtained 
from Napoleon the authority which the sects so earnestly 
desired. And an order came from Paris to the King insist- 
ing on the suppression of the Redemptorists. With tears in 
his eyes the King was compelled to sign the following in- 
iquitous decree: 

Frederick Augustus, 

By the grace of God King of Saxony and Prince of 

Warsaw. 

"We have waited till now for the papers regarding the 
affairs of the Bennonite Fathers, wishing to examine into 
them ourselves and especially as to the incidents connected 
with the functions at Easter. This long delay has now been 
removed owing to certain confidential reports from the 
French Court, founded on the complaints of the authorities 
of Warsaw, who consider that it would be dangerous for the 
Principality to allow the continued residence of those Fathers 
in the City, seeing that they have mixed themselves up with 
political matters, although contrary to their rule and vo- 
cation. Hence we order: 

1 th That the Bennonite Fathers shall be immediately re- 
moved from the Principality of Warsaw. 

2 nd That it shall be lawful for them to carry away with 
them all their personal property. 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 139 

3 rd That the Minister of the Interior shall provide them 
with the necessary means of transport for their journey. 

4 th That the Minister of the Interior and the Police, in 
concert with the French Authorities, shall sequestrate all 
the papers of the said Fathers, which must afterwards he 
examined by a commission chosen by the Minister and the 
French Council. 

5 th That the Church of the Bennonites shall be closed till 
further orders. 

6 th The Ministers and the French Authorities shall deter- 
mine the time and the mode of execution of this Our Decree. 
But we command that the Minister of the Interior and the 
Head of the Police shall send us in without delay a report 
of the execution of this our will. 

Dated from our Palace of Pillnitz, 9 th of June 1808. 
Frederick Augustus. Stanislaus Breza, 

Secretary of State. 

With regard to this Decree, the Archbishop, Count Ra- 
cynski, rightly remarked : "Any one who reads the Decree 
-for the expulsion of the Redemptorist Fathers must see 
that they were punished in spite of their entire innocence : 
for if their enemies had found the shadow of a real fault 
in them, they would not have failed to publish it as a 
crime and allude to it with malicious words in the Decree 
itself." 

What the King signed with tears, was carried out in a 
most lamentable way. The good Fathers, as malefactors, 
were surprised and literally dragged out of the City : so that 
it might be said by them as by their Divine Master: "You 
are come out as it were to a robber , with swords and clubs 
to apprehend me." (26. St. Mat. 55 th verse. Our Lord, 
however, would not leave His faithful servant, Clement, 
without a warning of the coming blow. One day, during 
the octave of Pentecost, which fell that year on the 5 th of 



140 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw 

June) lie was repeating before the Blessed Sacrament the 
87 th Psalm and came to the words: "I am poor and in la- 
hours from my youth : and being exalted, have been hum- 
bled and troubled/' when he felt a violent shaking, accom- 
panied with a loud noise which made him tremble all over. 
Whilst he was thinking over this and wondering what it 
could possibly mean, he felt another equally severe shock. 
He recognised then a supernatural agency in it all, and 
looked upon it as a warning of some great misfortune. 
He humbled himself before God, resigning himself entirely 
to His holy Will and offering himself as a perfect holocaust : 
after which , his habitual calm returned and he was in per- 
fect peace. 

The following day, an agent of the police, dressed in 
plain clothes, came secretly to F. Clement, told him that 
the Decree for the suppression of the Congregation had been 
signed , and that if he had any private or important papers 
in the house, he had better burn them at once, as the secret 
police had orders to allow nothing of that sort to be taken 
out of the house. F. Clement thanked him for the warning 
and at once set to work to dispose of everything. He sum- 
moned the Rector, F. Iestersheim and made him burn all 
the letters without giving him the reason. Then he called 
him and all the Fathers into the Refectory and after having 
imposed silence upon them, made them a short and touching 
allocution and then announced to them the sad news. All 
responded to his words with tears and sighs. They did not 
weep for their own fate, but for the irreparable harm which 
would be done to innumerable souls in that unhappy city. 
F. Clement consoled them as well as he could with loving 
words and then gave orders that all the chalices, vestments 
and other valuable ornaments of the church should be hid- 
den in a safe place. Time pressed and at any moment they 
might expect the execution of the fatal Decree. The valu- 
able relics were distributed among the priests and every one 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 141 

was warned to take into his own room the linen , clothes 
and money required for the journey. Having thus made 
all the necessary dispositions, they returned to their respec- 
tive employments, expecting from one hour to another the 
conclusion of the tragedy. At last, the hour came when 
God permitted the enemies of the Congregation to do what 
they willed with the house and its inmates. Any one who 
witnessed the warlike preparations which preceded the ex- 
pulsion of a few harmless monks might have imagined that 
a revolution was impending or that an invading army was 
at hand. The Governor, fearing lest the Poles should look 
upon the expulsion of the Redemptorists as an attack upon 
their religion and that they would consequently fly to arms 
in their defence, occupied all the corners of the streets 
with troops. 

On the 20 th of June (being the Monday after the Feast of 
Corpus Christi) the Government agents arrived- very early 
in the morning at the House of St. Eennone, while , at the 
same time, the church was entirely surrounded by soldiers. 
Seals were affixed to the Sacristy, the Library and the Rector's 
room, and then all the Fathers and Brothers were summoned 
into the Refectory. One was just finishing his mass : another 
was in the confessional, a third was preaching and had 
to break off in the middle and leave the pulpit. The congre- 
gation could not, at first, understand, why one Father was 
called out after the other and looked at one another in mute 
surprise. Then a few wished to leave the church ; but found 
all the doors closed and guarded by the troops. Hearing 
the noise of the carriages and the soldiers outside they at 
last understood that the dreaded catastrophe was at hand. 
Then followed a burst of indignation and sorrow from them 
all and many bursting into tears, exclaimed : tf O ! my God. 
They have taken away our good Fathers and we shall 
never be allowed to see them any more!" 

In the mean time, all the members of the community 



142 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw 

"being assembled in the Refectory, the principal Com- 
missioner delivered to F. Clement the Decree of suppression 
and the list of the proscribed saying: "Here, Sir, is the 
Decree of the suppression, and all the persons named in 
this list are desired to leave the house with us without 
reply." 

No one made any answer: but at a sign from Father 
Clement, each went to his cell and quickly returned with his 
respective bundle ready for the journey. The Commissioners 
were taken completely aback at their readiness in obeying 
the orders so arbitrarily given; and could not understand 
who had warned the Fathers of the issuing of the Decree. 
They feared, however, that some resistance would be made 
during the journey. The perfect calmness and serenity of 
the persecuted Fathers touched then deeply: and one or 
two of them were so moved that F. Clement himself had to 
encourage them to carry out their instructions. So true is 
it that virtue such as theirs draws the homage even of the 
impious ! 

In the mean time the carriages were drawn up at the door 
of the house, into each of which three of the religious, with 
one commissioner, were ordered to enter; the commissioner 
being appointed to prevent their escape and to provide the 
necessary expenses of the journey. The carriages were then 
closed and started oif, escorted by a strong body of ca- 
valry. 

We may fancy the grief of the Fathers at being thus for- 
cibly carried off from their beloved monastery: but still 
greater was their dismay when, on reaching the gates of 
the City, they discovered that they were all being driven in 
different directions : nor could they imagine what was to be 
their ultimate destination. 

When the Police saw that the carriages had driven off 
and that the Fathers were actually outside the City gates, 
they opened the doors of the church and let out the con- 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 143 

gregation. Then calling a neighbouring priest, they ordered 
him to remove the Blessed Sacrament to the nearest Parish 
Church, and closing that of the Redemptorists, they affixed 
to the doors the government seals. 

The indignation of the people at this impious proceeding 
was deep and menacing : so much so that bands of soldiers 
were ordered to patrol all the streets of the City and the 
sentrys were every where doubled. Marshall Davoust, in 
order to calm the inhabitants, put out a French proclama- 
tion, which was afterwards translated into Polish by the 
adjutant Szymanowski, who had the command of the troops 
at the moment of the expulsion. When the cause of Father 
Clement's beatification was first introduced, he was living 
in Rome, where he soon after died. When questioned as to 
the facts we have just narrated, he deplored his blindness 
at that time with many tears and could not be consoled at 
the thought that, in his youth, he had lent a hand to and 
been made an instrument of so iniquitous a proceeding. 
Soon after the suppression of the Warsaw house, the same 
fate befell those in other parts of Poland and Russia. Thus 
was Father Clement's great and arduous work of 20 years 
brutally destroyed in a few hours, and the Religious whom 
thousands of persons venerated as their best friends and bene- 
factors, were cruelly exiled and despoiled of all their pos- 
sessions to satisfy the hatred of the enemies of Christianity. 

If the Royal Decree of expulsion were in itself severe and 
unjust, its execution was to the last degree hard and cruel. 
By the terms of the Decree, the proscribed Fathers were to 
be treated with consideration; they were to be allowed to 
carry away with them all their personal property, and were 
to be provided with money for their journey and freedom to 
go where they liked outside the principality. But in its exe- 
cution, not one of there conditions were observed. They 
were carried off and treated as the worst of malefactors and 
not allowed to speak to any human being. 



144 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaw. 

Great was the exultation of the sects at this unexpected 
triumph. On the evening of the day of the Father's expul- 
sion, the Free-masons made a great banquet in their principal 
lodge and passed the night in firing off pistols and other in- 
sane demonstrations of joy. Their newspapers determined 
to justify the action of the Government and for several days 
were loud in their denunciations of the supposed crimes of 
the Redemptorists. But all who were not in their camp, 
knew well the value of such calumnies, and the Catholics 
saw clearly enough in the outrages showered on the victims, 
the best proof that could be given of their innocence.* 

But leaving the base intrigues of F. Clement's enemies 
for a moment on one side, let us turn to the evidence given 
by a noble Polish Lady, Mary Cecilia de Cholomiewska, 
afterwards superior of the Salesian Nuns of Kaminiec, 
driven out of Poland as the Redemptorist Fathers had been 
and who is now living at Lemberg though 92 years of age. 
She writes: 

"I always have before my eyes that venerable priest with 
his noble and dignified yet simple bearing, who seemed to 
spread a kind of holy peace and divine love wherever he 
went. His conversation was always simple: he never used 
long words: but what he said impressed one strangely and 
at once excited one's confidence. His great Love of Our 
Lord showed itself in every action ; yet he had not a vestige 
of singularity or of affectation. His face literally beamed 
with purity and with that peace which is the fruit of holy 
joy and intimate union with God. The Holy Spirit had 



* There were found, however, many loyal and honest men publickly 
to refute these vile calumnies, and among the rest Archbishop Raczynski 
wrote : "They took very good care to exile these good Fathers without a 
trial, nor could any one understand for what reason men were thus cruelly 
and ignominiously treated who had won the universal esteem of the whole 
country and whose admirable free schools had trained so many hundred 
youths in science and piety. But it was from their eminent virtue and 
usefulness that they drew down upon themselves the odium of the bad." 



and the Fathers barbarously driven away. 145 

given him a special gift to guide souls. He worked without 
intermission to bring about the salvation of men, seeking 
out the most miserable and abandoned of God's creatures 
and exhausting himself on their behalf without ever thin- 
king of rest. 

His principal devotion was towards the Blessed Sacra- 
ment of the Altar and this he endeavoured to excite in the 
hearts of all ; together with an ardent desire for the frequent 
reception of Holy Communion. He would exhort his peni- 
tents so to labour as to be worthy to communicate daily: 
and in order that Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament should be 
duly honoured, he introduced the Solemn Adoration in 
Warsaw, where he had found a great want of such devotion. 
The daily visits to the Blessed Sacrament which he estab- 
lished , were made in the most solemn way in the Church 
of St. Bennone and produced the most salutary results. 
The multitudes of people of every rank who joined in this 
devotion were daily drawn nearer to God , and the Fathers 
in their sermons dwelt long and often on the efficacy of 
prayer before the Blessed Sacrament and increased the de- 
sire of the faithful to frequent the church for this purpose. 
Confessions, which used to be very rare, became frequent 
and the same with communions. In that Church of St. 
Bennone it seemed as if a continual Feast were being 
held — or rather a continual Mission. The church was al- 
ways full and the confessionals besieged by penitents. Under 
F. Clement's directions also, a multitude of pious associa- 
tions and confraternities were formed especially among 
young men, which produced extraordinary fruit. After the 
expulsion of the Fathers these associations were gradually 
dropped : but many afterwards entered into religious com- 
munities and gave great edification by their lives. 

F. Clement was loved and honoured by every one. His 
sweetness and amiability attracted quite irresistably all who 
knew him intimately. He would bring spiritual subjects 



146 The Congregation is destroyed in Warsaiv, tfc. 

into conversation so sweetly and simply that they never 
seemed forced or ont of place. In the first talk I ever had 
with him, he asked me "if I frequented the Sacraments?" 
I named my French confessor, when he was silent: hut on 
his next visit, said to me : "Go on making your confessions 
to him : for I have found out he is not a Jansenist". Very 
often, however^ I went to confession to F. Clement, who 
always exhorted me to greater charity and gentleness and 
admonished me to preserve purity of heart "by a frequent 
reception of the Blessed Eucharist. His goodness knew 
really no bounds. When any one spoke of a noted sinner, 
he would say : "Send him to me". And it was extraordinary 
what conversions he effected, even among some of the worst of 
the Free-masons, inducing them to break their bonds and free 
themselves once and for all from the tyranny and terrorism 
of the sects. If ever he found Jansenist books in a house, 
like Nicol's, for instance, he would turn them out with dis- 
gust. It was not only the Salesians who were so greatly 
indebted to him but all the Warsaw nuns. Those of 
the Blessed Sacrament were all his penitents : so also were 
the Carmelites, the Canonesses of St. Augustine, and many 
others: "It is not to be wondered at, then", writes Canon 
Prusinowski, "that the Apostolic life of so holy a man 
and the spirit which animated both himself and his com- 
panions, shoult have won all Catholic hearts to. the Con- 
gregation." 

As Warsaw, when F. Clement walked down the street, 
every one would follow him with love and veneration; 
and mothers would present their babies to him to implore 
his blessing. F. Clement himself always retained the great- 
est affection for Poland : and only two years before his death 
he was seriously engaged in a project to reestablish the 
Congregation in that unhappy country, regarding which 
he seemed occasionally to have extraordinary revelations 
from our Lord. One morning, in particular, when he was 



F. Clement detained at the Fortress of Gastrin. 147 

making his usual thanksgiving after mass, he seemed, all 
of a sudden, as if wrapt in a kind of ecstasy. Then his face 
changed : he sighed heavily and tears coursed one another 
down his cheeks ; but he did not utter a word. After a little 
time, he seemed to wake out of a deep sleep and exclaimed 
with deep sorrow : w O ! Unhappy Poland ! "What miseries 
are about to fall upon thee ! What crimes will bring about 
thy ruin! Thou art bathed in thy blood!" More than 
that could not be heard. And he never spoke of it again. 
At other times, however, he seemed to hope for a happier 
future for that distracted Kingdom, which had given such 
illustrious Saints to the Church and was ever fruitful in 
grand and generous souls. 



CHAPTER XX. 

Father Clement with his brethren detained at the Fort- 
ress oe Custrin. His journey to Vienna. 

[1808.] 

FROM fear of the people in the neighbourhood, the 
Fathers, as we have said, were divided on leaving Warsaw 
and driven in different directions: but their separation, 
which had been an addition to their trial, was not to last 
long. One place had been chosen for their exile; so that 
nearly at the same moment, all their different carriages drove 
up to the Fortress of Custrin on the Oder, in the Province 
of Brandenburg in Prussia*: and there F. Clement, full of 
sorrow at the treatment of his sons, could at least rejoice in 
having them all round him once more. 

The arrival of these unexpected prisoners 'produced a 



* After the Treaty of Tilsit the French occupied the Fortresses of 
Prussia, leaving only the Civil Administration in the hands of the Prus- 
sians. 



148 F. Clement with his Brethren 

great sensation among the Protestant population of Ciistrin. 
Everybody asked who they were? and for what crime they 
had been exiled from a Catholic country? and however much 
the soldiers tried to keep away the people, the latter would 
continually crowd round the fortress and whenever any of 
the Fathers appeared, would be never weary of admiring their 
calm and dignified aspect and their quiet resignation to their 
unmerited imprisonment. They declared they had never seen 
criminals of that sort. When they found out that they spoke 
German, the sympathy for them was only increased. "They 
seem such good people I" they exclaimed : "how is it they are 
thus treated?" Others said: "We do not treat our own min- 
isters so, even if they have committed grave crimes!" 
And when they had ascertained that the only sin of these 
poor Religious was, that they had shown too much zeal for 
religion, public sympathy was openly manifested, together 
with a real veneration towards the Fathers ; and many said : 
"O ! our pastors would never have made such a sacrifice for 
their Faith!" 

The Governor, however, who knew the truth, did his best 
to compensate the Fathers for their unjust imprisonment 
by treating them as well as he could. He gave them each a 
room provided with every necessary, and besides that, a large 
apartment decorated with holy pictures, in which was an 
altar and every thing that was required for saying mass. He 
behaved towards them invariably with great kindness and 
made them hope that the King of Prussia would allow them 
to open another house in a Catholic part of his dominions. 
But Father Clement knew the Prussian Government too 
well to entertain hopes of that nature. 

After they were a little settled, he introduced once more 
the regular life of the monastery and no one hindered them. 
On the contrary, full liberty was given to them , even to go 
out of the house. In the mean time, the sympathy of the 
people increased daily and all the more, as they also had 



detained at the Fortress of Ciistrin. 149 

suffered so terribly from the French. They were especially 
delighted with the devout hymns which were heard so often 
from the windows of the Ciistrin Fortress : for F. Clement 
was a great lover of holy songs and promoted them on all 
occasions. Besides, he was anxious to do everything he pos- 
sibly could to keep up the courage and cheerfulness of his 
spiritual sons: so that in the midst of their tribulations, they 
sang daily the praises of God and maintained a quietness 
and even brightness of spirit which greatly impressed the 
Protestants around them. F. Clement's favourite Hymn at 
that time may thus be literally rendered: 

Ah! Thon listenest, at»last, 0! Heaven! 

To our ardent sighs and tears, 

And without veil or other hindrance 

We shall see our Lord appear. 

To the throne of God Almighty 

Will our voice and heart ascend, 

With desire and affection 

Shall our hearts in union bend. . . . 

But the ardent desire he felt to be once more at work in 
our Lord's Vineyard, made F. Clement address the following 
letter to the Prince Archbishop of Gnesnia : 

"Most gracious and Reverend Prince ! 
The gratitude of your sons to so loving a Father, makes 
it a duty to Avrite and offer you our homages. But we must 
temper the expression of our feelings, so as not to sadden too 
much your paternal heart. Although we are not worthy to 
be called your sons and your sheep, yet in you we recognise 
both our Father and our Pastor: and therefore we venture 
to lay at your feet the expression of our deep gratitude for 
all the benefits you have heaped upon us, the memory of 
which will always remain engraved in our hearts and will 
render it incumbent on us continually to lift up our prayers 
to the Father of mercy, that He may crown you with every 
blessing and consolation. 



150 F. Clement with his Brethren 

As for ourselves, we are resigned to the fate which has 
befallen us in accordance with the holy will of God. Suffer- 
is sweet when there is no remorse for that which has not 
been our fault. The decree was communicated to us with- 
out any previous trial or enquiry: but its execution was far 
harder than the tenor of the decree. The decree gave us the 
right to carry away with us our own property : but we were 
exiled so precipitately that this was not possible. The pre- 
tended examination held before certain priests was so abo- 
minable as not to be mentioned. Here we are separated 
from all and we cannot imagine the reason why. We have 
been placed in this Fortress and God alone knows what fate 
is reserved to us. The signatures which were extracted from 
the Poles in Warsaw were contrary to their conscience. 
But in all these things we recognise the will of God. May 
He be for ever blessed! for He hath permitted all this to 
happen to us, doubtless because we were not what we 
should be. 

Now, all we can do is, to turn to your Highness and to 
implore your mediation with His Majesty the King. If we 
are not to be allowed to return into the province of Warsaw, 
at least let them give us back our own things : and we crave 
further the liberty to go either into Saxony or Alsace. 

We recommend ourselves, as unworthy servants, to the 
benevolent consideration of your Highness. 

Clement Hofbauer, Vic. General, 
with all the Congregation of the S. S. Redeemer. 

Custrin, the 25 th of June 1808. 

In spite of the sympathy of the Archbishop, it was how- 
ever, found to be impossible to obtain the King's consent 
to a new foundation in Saxony or Alsace : for certainly they 
had not been driven away from Warsaw for the purpose of 
transplanting them, as a compact and strong body, into 
another place: but in order to weaken and disperse them. 



detained at the Fortress of Cilstrin. 151 

But their sojourn at Ciistrhi was not to last more than a 
month, and then came an order that the community were 
to be separated and that each of them should repair to his 
native country. One reason which induced the authorities 
to shorten their stay in Custrin was, thafe every day the Fa- 
thers acquired greater influence over the Protestant popu- 
lation, who, edified by their conduct and touched at their 
pious songs, openly showed their sympathy towards them. 
The Protestant Pastors became very much alarmed at the 
tendency many showed to become Catholics ; and urged the 
Government in consequence to remove the Fathers as soon 
as possible. 

The day came when these poor Religious found them- 
selves compelled to separate from one another: and their 
parting was the more sad as they foresaw the possibility of 
never being again reunited in community, which unhappily 
was the case. But resigning themselves in this, as in all else, 
to the holy will of God and after receiving the blessing of 
their much-loved Superior, they started for their different 
destinations. 

F. Clement obtained leave to take with him the young 
cleric, Martin Stark, Avith whom he marched towards Vienna. 
The journey was a very difficult one: for in their passports, 
the route they were to follow was minutely prescribed. But 
as F. Clement was most anxious to say mass every day, he 
sometimes had to deviate a little from the route to be able 
to find a Catholic church. In Upper Silesia, however, they 
ran a great risk. French troops occupied the country, and 
a sentinel stopped them and asked for their passports, which 
unhappily Stark had lost on the way. Being brought before 
the-Commandant, they where severely reproved and roughly 
handed ; and he not believing that they had lost their pass- 
ports threatened to shoot them then and there, as spies. 
But most fortunately while this subject was being discussed, 
a Polish officer came in who knew F. Clement well and 



152 F. Clement with his Brethren 

instantly made himself his guarantee. Nevertheless, they 
were detained in a convent until an answer could he re- 
ceived from Ciistrin, which affirmed that they had actually 
started with their passports; but that they had certainly 
deviated a little from the prescribed route. After a good deal 
of annoyance, F. Clement and his companion were allowed 
to proceed on their journey, but not without having received 
a very sharp reprimand. 

In this way R Clement arrived at the frontier of a coun- 
try which he had loaded with benefits. But even in the land 
which he was now entering he was not well received, but 
loaded with unjust suspicions and endless vexations. They 
had hardly crossed the frontier when they were again im- 
prisoned because they had no Austrian passports, and they 
were obliged to wait till a Polish Lady could obtain them 
from Vienna. With this they continued their journey by 
Olmiitz, Briinn and Tasswitz, where F. Clement paid a visit 
to his sister, Barbara, who had received the church orna- 
ments safely which had been despatched from Warsaw. 
After a short stay in his native land, F. Clement hastened 
to reach Vienna, meditating all the while on fresh under- 
takings and anticipating still more arduous labours. 

Who that saw this poor priest's way-worn entrance into 
Vienna, could have guessed that he was to be the great in- 
strument chosen by God to revive piety in that city and to 
save innumerable souls not only there but throughout 
Austria? Who would have imagined that a poor and humble 
Religious already well-advanced in years, was to be the spi- 
ritual physician sent by Providence to infuse a new life into 
the Church, which for so many years had languished and 
well nigh perished in that country ? Yet so it was : and the 
words of the Apostle were once more verified that "The fool- 
ish things of the world hath God chosen that He may confound the 
wise : and the weak things of the world hath God chosen that He 



detained at the Fortress of Ciistrin. 153 

confound the strong. And the base things of the ivorld and the 
things that are contemptible hath God chosen, and things that are not, 
that He might bring to nought things that are. That no flesh should 
glory in His sight." 1 st Cor. 1. chap. 27. 28. & 29. v. 

Which, words received a fresh confirmation from Father 
Clements life, as we shall see in the following book. 



THE THIRD BOOK 

FROM THE ARRIVAL OF FATHER CLEMENT IN 

VIENNA IN 1808 TILL HIS PRECIOUS DEATH 

IN 1820. 



CHAPTER I. 

His arrival in Vienna. His residence near the Italian 
Church, in which he exercises his zeal and greatly pro- 
motes THE WORSHIP OP THE BLESSED SACRAMENT, 

[From 1808 to 1813.] 

NO sooner had F. Clement arrived in the Austrian capital, 
than he had to suffer the petty persecutions of the 
Police. But sufferings, outrages and persecutions were his 
birthright and assuredly they did not fail him in Vienna. 
First, he was taken to the Police station, and there detained 
several days. Various accusations were made against him : 
among the rest, that he had taken with him to Poland two 
youths of Znaim and Tasswitz, without permission of the 
Government : that he had secretly left the Dominican Con- 
vent in Cracow where he had been imprisoned : that he had 
crossed the frontier and returned to Warsaw : and more than 
all, that he had with him certain monies and rich vestments 
which could not be considered the lawful property of a poor 
Religious. He had to justify himself upon all these charges 

154 



From 1808 to 1813. 155 

one by one; and had no difficulty in proving his innocence. 
The money he had about him he had received for masses 
from the Royal Family of Bourbon in Mietaw: the vest- 
ments came from Warsaw. To these undeniable facts, was 
superadded the mediation of many distinguished personages, 
so that after three days he was set at liberty, though under 
the supervision of the Police for some time. F. Clement and 
his companion, however, after the example of the Apostles 
"went from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they were ac- 
counted worthy to suffer reproach for the name of Jesus" and even 
augured well for their future missions, from the very fact 
of the persecution they had endured. 

The first thing to do was to find a house in which he and 
Martin could live and serve God in, silence , till a way was 
opened to them to work publickly for the salvation of men. 
First , he went and stayed with a friend in the Alservor- 
stadt; but soon after, he found a little lodging in the town 
adjoining the Italian Church, of which Baron Penkler was 
the secular administrator. The house assigned to him was 
very small, but suited F. Clement well, he having for 
many years had intimate relations with the Rector of the 
Italian Church, Don Luigi Virginio, an Ex-Jesuit, who used 
to be his interpreter between Rome and Warsaw, as we have 
before related. He had also several warm friends in two or 
three others of the Clergy attached to that church, such as 
Count Simeon de la Tour, Don Pietro Rigoletti, Comte 
Guicciardini, Lantieri and Stampfer. 

F. Clement would at once have commenced his labours 
in that church, both by preaching and hearing confessions, 
but prudence compelled him to remain for a time hidden 
and retired, as the Police were on the watch to spy out 
every step he took. Added to this, in 1809, the French en- 
tered Vienna and exercised also a hostile influence. On 
the 13 th of May that capital fell into the hands of the French. 
On the 6 tk of June the battle of Wagram was fought near 



156 From 1808 to 1813. 

Vienna ; and on the 1 8 th of October the Emperor Francis I. 
concluded a peace with Napoleon at the Castle of Schon- 
brunn. 

The French had always been hostile to the Congregation 
of the Redemptorists and banished them from Bavaria, Po- 
land and Switzerland, and hence F. Clement, as Vicar 
General, could not venture to act openly, so as to attract 
their attention. Therefore, even from that motive, he was 
condemned to quiet and silence. 

However, though precluded from preaching or administer- 
ing the sacraments, he did not remain idle. Two weapons 
remained to him, penance and prayer, so that the heart of God 
might be moved and a door opened to him to resume his 
apostolic labours. In the mean while, his companion, Mar- 
tin Stark, prepared himself to receive the Priesthood, which 
he did on the 14 th of Oct. 1810 from the Apostolic Nunzio, 
Severoli, in the Nunzio' s own Chapel. 

They both lived at that time in the greatest poverty, F. 
Clement resuming the trade of cook and preparing what 
poor food they could find, unless they were asked out to 
dinner. 

F. Clement was especially well received in Vienna by the 
bakers, as he had formerly learnt their trade. Almost every 
Friday and Saturday they dined with the baker, Weyer, at 
the "Iron Pear", where, as a boy, F. Clement had worked. 
At other times , they dined with another baker named Ap- 
prich, in Rauhenstein Street. Their hosts looked upon these 
days as seasons of great joy and edification ; for F. Clement, as 
usual, though he eat little, would interest his friends so much 
with his stories, which always had a devotional turn, and told 
them so many edifying facts with such a charm and sweet- 
ness of manner, that they were too delighted to have him. 
His little house corresponded exactly with his life and was 
a perfect model of poverty. It was situated just behind the 
high altar of the Italian Church, the altar of the Blessed 



From 1808 to 1813. 157 

Sacrament being close by; so that he could, as at Warsaw, 
make himself the Guardian of the Divine Tabernacle and 
enjoy sweet communion with his beloved Lord and Master. 
He had been also given the permission to go from his own 
room by a little covered passage to the Oratory of the Arch- 
duchess Beatrix (Mother of Francis IV. Duke of Modena) , 
where he could satisfy his ardent desire for prayer. In this 
chapel, in fact, he passed many hours of .the day and often 
part of the night. 

Another favourite place of pilgrimage with him was the 
Church of "Mary Help of Christians" in the suburb of that 
name, where the mother of God was specially revered. 

But this strict retirement was not permitted to last long. 
For in the year 1809 Don Luigi Virginio, the Rector of the 
Italian Church died, a victim of charity, as F. Thaddeus 
had been two years before in Warsaw, having caught the 
typhus fever whilst attending to the French sick in the 
Hospital. Until his successor could be appointed, F. Cle- 
ment was intreated to take the office of his deceased friend 
and act as Rector. 

In this way, he resumed his priestly functions sooner than 
he expected, and even when a successor to the Rector was 
appointed in the person of Don Clemente Caselli, he, being 
an old man, implored F. Clement to undertake all the 
functions in the church, which F. Clement accepted with 
great pleasure. And so a new field of operations was opened 
out to him which his zeal made as fruitful as possible. First 
of all, he determined to try and make the sacred offices of 
the church as perfect and beautiful as he could , so as to 
attract the faithful and supply the want of preaching. And 
in truth the magnificent functions at the Italian Church 
soon produced a marvellous effect. To see that venerable 
Priest offering up the Holy Sacrifice, or assisting at pro- 
cessions, or reciting litanies, or still more, carrying the 
Blessed Sacrament at an exposition with such overwhelming 



158 - From 1808 to 1813. 

reverence and love, touched the most indifferent among the 
congregation. His modest reverence, his tender devotion, 
and the deep humility which shone in his whole coun- 
tenance produced a marked and salutary impression. But 
of all the Feasts, the one he celebrated with the greatest 
joy was that of the "Forty Hours", in which the Italian 
Church had the precedence of all the churches in Vienna : 
and this solemn function was so dear to him that even in 
after years he never would miss it if he could help it. He 
would go the day before expressly to help in making the 
necessary preparations and generally sang the High mass 
on the occasion. When he had to officiate in the church of 
the Mechitarists he would take equal care to celebrate this 
function with the greatest possible splendour. 

After a time, he resumed his labours in the confessional, 
hearing both Germans and Italians. Every Saturday he re- 
paired to a church in the suburbs very early in the morning 
to hear the confessions of the poor, and often made them a 
little address in honour of the Divine Mother. In this way, 
he became, by degrees, well known and the good began to 
flock to him for counsel and assistance from all sides. He 
formed around him a kind of Congregation of young men of 
every class, who looked up to him as their father and best 
friend: and the more they knew him the more they were 
attracted by his wonderful sweetness and charm of manner 
and were led on by him to the practice of every heavenly 
virtue. 

Nor were women excluded from his paternal care. Among 
the first who placed themselves Under his direction were 
the two sisters Biringer, who gave such valuable evidence 
of his sanctity at the time when the cause of his beatification 
was brought forward. Their father had met him several 
times in the baker's (Apprich's) house and was so edified by 
his manner and conversation that he made up his mind to 
entrust to him the religious education of his daughters. He 



From 1808 to 1813. 159 

hardly, however, dared ask him such a favour : but at the 
first hint he gave, the sewant of God showed himself most 
willing to undertake this charitable office and hence be- 
came a constant visitor in the house, heard the first con- 
fessions and gave their first communion to his children and 
became the friend and adviser of the whole family, both in 
temporal and spiritual matters. In the same way, F. Cle- 
ment instructed in Catholic Doctrine the little Countess 
Caroline Zichy, prepared her for her first confession and 
communion and guided her in the paths of virtue till his 
death. Up to the year 1865, the pious Countess remembered 
a number of little incidents regarding his teaching. Among 
others, one day she asked him with childish simplicity "if in 
Heaven she would have beautiful frocks?" "Little goose that 
you are!" exclaimed the good Father. "The most beautiful 
dress you can have in this world will appear but as dirty 
rags in comparison with the glory you will have in Para- 
dise!" The wholesome influence he exercised over the young 
Countess may be abundantly seen in the earnest wish she 
had all her life to dedicate herself to God in a religious life, 
although, family duties, especially towards her aunt, Countess 
Zichy Ferrari, prevented her doing so. But hardly had she 
breathed her last in 1866, than her devoted niece although 
60 years of age, entered the Convent of the Salesians at 
Brussels. 

Innumerable were the conversions effected by F. Clement 
during the period of which we are now speaking, especially 
those of the Brothers Weit : but we will conclude this chap- 
ter with the words of Francis Hemmerich who saw him 
at that time and wrote as follows : 

"In the years 1811 — 1812 I used to attend the Italian 
Church then served by Father Clement. His extraordinary 
humility and devotion edified me so much that I felt as if I 
were watching an Angel from heaven. I wanted very much 
to speak to him : but such a crowd of young men surrounded 



160 F. Clement is named Confessor 

him when he left the church that I could not get near him. 
I never saw any man like Father Clement in my life; nei- 
ther in Vienna nor in Wiirzburg, which is my native coun- 

try." 



CHAPTER II. 

He was named Confessor and Director of the Ursulines. 
Deplorable state of the Church in Vienna. Who was 
Archbishop Hohenwarth. The daily occupations of Father 

Clement. 

THE great good effected by F. Clement in the Italian 
Church and the visible blessing from Heaven which seemed 
to accompany all his works, had not escaped the notice of 
the Archbishop, Count Sigismund Von Hohenwarth; and 
the post of Confessor to the Ursulines falling vacant in 1813, 
he nominated F. Clement to that office, which the latter 
accepted. It is true that the direction of nuns did not enter 
into the sphere of action prescribed by St. Alphonsus to his 
sons : and far rather would F. Clement have been employed 
in preaching and giving missions. But the times and cir- 
cumstances were such, that he felt it was a simple duty to 
accept the charge. In fact, the very name of a "Mission" 
infuriated the present Government : while the office of 
Confessor to the Ursulines offered him a favourable oppor- 
tunity for working wonders in the salvation of souls. The 
Ursulines had a thousand children in their schools and 
had also higher classes for day-scholars ; and an Institution 
for training School-Mistresses. An increase of fervour in 
the nuns would necessarily influence all those under their 
instruction and by raising the tone of the whole Community, 
would procure the salvation of very many souls outside the 
monastery. The Confessor of the nuns was likewise Rector 
of the Church, where he could preach, hear confessions. 



and Director of the TJrsulines. 161 

and perform all other sacerdotal functions. Hence this 
appointment gave F. Clement an opportunity of labouring 
for the people and promoting their spiritual welfare more 
easily than in any other position. 

On the 31 st of May 1813, on the Feast of St. Angela 
Merici, the Foundress of the TJrsulines, F. Clement entered 
upon his new office and lived in a little house in the Seiler- 
statte street, adjoining the monastery. To arrive at his apart- 
ment one had to climb up to the 2 nd floor of an old, poor, 
and mean -looking house.* There he had but one room, 
with a tiny sort of dressing room on one side which held 
various little necessaries : while his one chamber served as 
his study, bedroom, diming-room and even oratory. The 
furniture consisted of two old wardrobes, a table of com- 
mon wood, an old sofa, two or three chairs, a 'bed, a kneel- 
ing- stool with a Crucifix and the image of the Madonna 
above it, a pendulum clock of no value and some old prints 
stuck on the Avails. On the floor above, F. Sabelli lived, 
and when he was sent to Switzerland, F. Stark took his 
place, though he slept near the Italian Church. A very small 
room alougside was inhabited by a young student named 
Srna, whom F. Clement educated and provided for and to 
whom we are indebted for this description of his home. 
From thence to the monastery, which was in the street 
called St. John, there were only about a hundred steps. 

The church of which F. Clement now had the care was 
not only poor and simple, but, we must own, was terribly 
neglected. It was so dirty and ill-kept that hardly any one 
would come to it. There were no sermons ever preached 
there except at Christmas, Easter and Pentecost, and when 
the Litanies were recited on Sundays and Festivals there 
were literally not above two or three people to make the 

* This house was bought and rebuilt in 1850 and is no longer as it 
was in F. Clement's days. The number is also changed, being for- 
merly N. 989 and now N. 11. 

11 



162 Deplorable State of 

response "Ora pro nobis". We can easily imagine F. Cle- 
ment's sadness at the first sight of this church, and the 
worst of it was that almost all the churches in Vienna were 
in a similar state ; i. e. deserted, stripped of their ornaments 
and deprived of all solemn functions. It could not be 
otherwise: for external worship being the expression of 
internal Faith, when that was wanting, the other would 
necessarily be abandoned. When Faith in the Real Pre- 
sence, for instance, is strong, the churches will be carefully 
adorned and everything provided to do honour to the solemn 
Mystery therein contained. But when Faith and love wax 
cold, there is no longer any interest in the matter. 

Now at the time F. Clement arrived in Vienna the Ca- 
tholic Church was, as it were, dead, mainly owing to the 
Emperor Joseph, who had done his best to destroy it. But 
even before he came to the throne, Protestantism had sown 
tares among the wheat andGallicanism had made open war 
against the Holy See. But the faithful Catholic of Austria 
could have made head against these two hostile powers if 
the Emperor, blinded to his own interests, had not, by his 
arbitrary laws, played into the hands of these subverters of 
the Faith. 

Infatuated with the idea of being Head of the Church, 
every one of his ordinances bore the stamp of schism ; while, 
to take away the old Faith from the hearts of the people, 
he attacked the Hierarchy and Liturgy of the Church in 
the most furious manner, and thus endeavoured to destroy 
the visible authority and external form appointed by God 
Himself. Hence the cry was, "no longer the Church, but 
the State": no more reference to the Pope but to the Em- 
peror : no longer the Bishops but the Ministers were to re- 
gulate the services in the churches and administer to the 
spiritual wants of the Dioceses ! "Thus", Avrites Henry Hurter, 
in the life of his Father Frederick, "the whole organisation 
of the church was well nigh destroyed. All Catholic works 



the Church in Vienna. 163 

were stopped, such as Confraternities, Associations of prayer, 
and the like, and almost all the convents were suppressed. 
Processions and pilgrimages were prohibited, and so like- 
wise were the common devotions in use among the people 
in the churches, such as Benediction, the Rosary, frequent 
exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, the Sepulchre on Holy 
Thursday, sung Vespers and in fact every external expres- 
sion of Catholic Faith. To supply the void, an imperial 
ordinance prescribed certain services which by their cold 
monotony alienated the piety of the Faithful ; and no sooner 
were these dismal functions over, than the churches were 
closed for the rest of the day. The multiplied expressions 
of Christian Piety being thus cut oif from the people and 
the admirable organisation of the Church destroyed, only a 
handful of individuals had the courage to substitute private 
devotions, while the masses became an easy prey to the se- 
ducers." 

In the same way and with the same object, the seminaries 
were suppressed, together with all the schools of Theology ; 
and all those who aspired to the Priesthood were obliged to 
study in the Royal University, where, under the guidance 
of masters who were professed Rationalists and who hated 
the Holy See , the students lost both their Faith and their 
love of God and of the Church 

Hence, all those who distinguished themselves by marked 
anti-Catholic tendencies were rewarded by promotion to the 
most important posts, such as Councillors of State, Ministers 
in the Public Offices, or Canonries and other dignities in 
the Church. Then, if they proved themselves sufficiently 
subservient to the state, they were made Bishops and Arch- 
bishops, and the Holy See found itself compelled to pre- 
conize them for fear of worse consequences — i. e. an open 
schism, with which that unworthy Ambassador, Cardinal 
Herzan, menaced Pope Pius VI. Hence these Bishops not 
only published the pernicious decrees of the Government 



164 Who was Archbishop Hohenwarth . 

and insisted on their observance by their priests, but they 
went so far as to declaim in their pastorals against all the 
ancient ecclesiastical institutions, which they impudently 
denounced as abuses and superstitions. 

It is fair to say that Archbishop Hohenwarth, who then 
administered the Diocese of Vienna, was not of this class of 
Bishops, but a man of proved virtue and full of earnest Ca- 
tholic sentiments. Born on the 2 nd of May 1730 at Gerlach- 
stein in Carniola, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1748 
and was employed in the instruction of youth and in giving 
missions. Five years after the suppression of the Society, he 
was summoned to the Court of the Grand Duke of Tuscany 
to undertake the education of the Archduke, afterwards 
Emperor under the title of Francis I. In the year 179-2, he 
was made Bishop of Trieste and six years later was trans- 
lated to the Bishopric of St. Hippolitus. But in 1803, the 
Archbishop of Vienna , Cardinal Migazzi dying , Francis I. 
promoted him to the Archbishopric. 

Hohenwarth lived a simple and austere life , dividing all 
his revenues among the poor and punctually fulfilling all 
exercises of piety. He loved F. Clement and still more, his 
disciple Frederick Werner, whom he received into his own 
house for a year and in whom he placed the most entire 
confidence. 

In spite of his admirable personal qualities, we must say 
that he did not know how to cope with the evils of the 
times : nor how to fill aright the first Metropolitan See in 
that vast monarchy. Besides, being appointed to the Arch- 
bishopric when he was 7 3 years of age and having filled that 
post till 1820, the feebleness of his physical powers incapa- 
citated him from governing the Church with vigour and 
energy, however much the circumstances of the times may 
have required it. For this reason he was liked by the Go- 
vernment, who left him free to govern his vast Diocese with 
his Canons, (many of whom were sadly unlike himself j and 



Who was Archbishop Hohemvarth. 165 

who knew that they would be spared any inconvenient com- 
plaints or protests. If occasionally the Archbishop would 
complain of the sad state of the Diocese, he never brought 
his complaints before the Government, being fully persuaded 
that his remonstrances would be worse than useless. There 
were very few, in fact, who had the courage to declare 
themselves openly to be Roman Catholic : for such a decla- 
ration was ascribed either to weakness of intellect or to a 
want of patriotism. It was simply impossible for a really 
honest Catholic priest to obtain any ecclesiastical dignity. 
To become even a Professor at the University, an Aulic 
Councillor, or a Canon, indubitable proofs would have to be 
given that the candidate was thoroughly imbued with what 
were called Josephin principles. Nor could any strictly 
Catholic books be published, because, though the censorship 
was in the hands of ecclesiastics, even these inexorably can- 
celled any writings which did not coincide with the pre- 
tended "new lights" of the day. What moral courage, then, 
did it not require, of any man to own to his Catholic prin- 
ciples ! For want of this bravery it happened that the great 
majority ended by denying their Faith, and the neglected 
and deserted condition of the churches was the strongest 
proof of the incredulity which unhappily was then dominant 
throughout the country. 

But this courage, so wanting in Vienna, was amply found 
in F. Clement : who, without caring for the opinions then 
in vogue, showed himself a truly Catholic Pastor. For that 
reason he was looked up to with the greatest admiration by 
the good, although dreaded by the followers of the new doc- 
trines. He became a centre of Catholic movement and in- 
fluence and a rallying point for the feeble and down-hearted. 
The seven years he passed at the Ursulines , however much 
they might be concealed by his humility, and by the obscure 
nature of his office, were in reality, the most fruitful in his 
Apostolic life : for during that time he managed to rouse 



166 The daily Occupations 

once more in Vienna and throughout Austria a truly Ca- 
tholic spirit. 

And as the life he led during those seven years was uni- 
form, we will here give a sort of Horarium of his daily oc- 
cupations, reserving the account of his brilliant spiritual 
triumphs to another chapter. 

He rose very early in the morning, often at three o'clock, 
according to the evidence of one of his devoted disciples 
Emanuel Veith, who sometimes slept in his room. Then he 
would at once say the following Hymn of which we here 
give a rough translation. 

All for the glory of my Lord and Saviour 
And for His honour, will I act this day. 
Whether in labour or repose 
All will I consecrate to Him. 
I give him body, soul, and life, 
And only ask His grace and aid. 
Bless us, 0! Lord, in this our strife, 
And save us from all mortal ills. 
0! Mary! help us in our needs, 
And plead thou for us with thy Son. 
Eternal God! To Thee I bring 
This offering of my daily life. 
Thou, the beginning and end of all, 
Direct my steps and guide my path. 
Accept me, Lord, without reserve, 
For Thine I am, in life, in death, in all! 



Then he said his morning prayers and made half an hour's, 
meditation : after which he began his ministerial work, from 
which no physical suffering or bad weather ever deterred 
him. Once or twice a week, he went to the church of the 
Mechitarist Fathers to hear the confessions of the poor and 
then he returned to the Ursulines to hear the confessions of 
the Nuns and others who were waiting for him there. But 
before seating himself in the Sacred Tribunal, he would 
kneel with profound humility on the steps of the altar and 
there, before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, pray for light 



of F.Clement, 167 

and grace to fulfil this difficult part of his ministry. He 
heard confessions till 10 o'clock but sometimes till %11, so 
great was the crowd around his confessional. Then he 
said mass with a devotion and compunction which edified 
all who were present at the Holy Sacrifice. 

After this tremendous fatigue, he would come home, trans- 
act the business of his Congregation with Fathers Sabelli 
and Stark, answer certain necessary letters, and give counsel 
to any who might be waiting to seek his advice. At midday, 
he made , with his Fathers , an examination of conscience, 
according to the Rule of St. Alphonsus and recited the Li- 
tany of our Lady : after which the simple dinner provided 
by the Ursulines arrived. But this, Father Clement would 
scarcely do more than taste, as he never would sit down at 
table, but served the rest, only taking a mouthful now and 
then. Sometimes he would eat nothing at all, but spent the 
time, while the others were dining, in reading or in holy 
conversation. 

In the afternoon he always paid a visit to some church. 
Either to that of Mary "Help of Christians", or to one in 
which the Blessed Sacrament was exposed, as he never, 
when he could help it, missed assisting at the "Fortry Hours" 
adoration. Then he would visit the sick, who had sent for 
him even if they lived in the most distant suburbs of the 
city, and above all, the "paavres hontmix" — i. e. people who 
had seen better days and were ashamed to make their distress 
known and to whom he secretly conveyed money and food. 
Whenever he was wanted, he would come back in the after- 
noon or evening to the Ursulines to hear confessions. But 
his immediate disciples and especially his confraternity of 
young men, used to come to the little room adjoining his 
own for their confessions. In fact, towards evening his 
house was full and especially of students, to whom he gave 
little conferences which produced extraordinarily good fruits. 
When they were gone, he would read a chapter of Holy 



1 68 F. Clement with his Faith and Zeal 

scripture and often one from the old Testament, or from the 
Acts of the Apostles. Then, when he was sure of being alone, 
on the days appointed by the Rule, he would take the dis- 
cipline and spend the rest of the evening in prayer : after 
which he would go to bed and take the brief sleep which so 
arduous a day required. 

Once or twice a year, he left all these exhausting occu- 
pations and passed eight days in retreat alone with God, 
going through the spiritual exercises, and to be more sure 
of solitude, he literally lived in the church, where he retired 
whenever pressed by importunate visitors. 

Thus his holy days were passed. Cardinal Rauscher writ- 
ing of him says : "F. Clement was incessantly occupied in 
our Lord's service and in labouring indefatigably for the 
eternal salvation of his neighbour." 

Not only his days but his nights were so employed : for 
if any sick person sent for him, he would curtail his short 
rest to watch with him and often sat up night after night 
with the dying. Neither did he ever dream of making up 
for it by resting a little longer the next day: but went 
straight from the sick-bed to the church, where he resumed 
his usual task in the confessional. Well may F. Clement be 
called "that good and faithful servant" whose whole life 
was spent in the service of his Lord, and who never let slip 
a single moment without employing it to the honour and 
glory of God! 

CHAPTER III. 

F. Clement by his faith and zeal inflamed the Viennese 

WITH A LIKE ARDOUR. 

THE humble baker would certainly never have become 
the Apostle of Vienna had he not been animated with that 
same spirit which filled the poor fishermen in Galilee and 



inflamed the Viennese with a like Ardour. 169 

transformed them into Apostles ; so that they were enabled 
to found, in the midst of the vice and corruptions of the 
great Roman Empire, a Christian Community which should 
endure to the end of time. Magnificent indeed were the 
proofs given of F. Clement's heroic Faith during the process 
of his beatification. One wrote : "The Faith of F. Clement 
was stronger than the iron rock and in matters of Faith he 
never would yield a single inch." "This venerable servant 
of God" added Cardinal Rauscher, "embraced with the most 
vivid Faith every truth revealed by the mercy of God and 
all that the Church proposed to him to believe." He very 
often was heard to thank God for having been born and bred 
of pious and Catholic parents and still more for having been 
so carefully educated by his pious mother in the true reli- 
gion and in the holy fear of God. He often said he had no 
merit in believing so fervently, for that he had never experi- 
enced the smallest temptation to do otherwise, and on the 
contrary it would have been a violent effort to him to doubt 
any revealed doctrine. Hence, speaking of infidels, he would 
often exclaim with sorrow : "Unhappy men ! what a multi- 
tude of errors must they believe, not to be able to believe 
the Truth!" "The light of Faith", wrote an Ursuline nun, 
Sister Jacqueline of Welschenau, "guided F. Clement in all 
his operations. In the pulpit and in familiar conversation 
he would continually allude to this great gift and say : "To 
one who has not faith, even the most sublime Truths of our 
holy religion appear as fables," or. again: "If I could under- 
stand the most sublime mysteries of Faith by opening my 
eyes, I would rather close them, so as not to lose the great 
merit of Faith", and again: "I do not myself believe my eyes 
so much as the infallible oracles of holy Church, for she can 
never err in matters of faith, while our eyes are subject to a 
thousand illusions." One day he was pasting a print on the 
wall and exclaimed, alluding to this topic : "I am more per- 
suaded that God is One in Three Persons than I am that 



170 F. Clement with his Faith and Zeal 

this picture is sticking on the wall." Canon Greif de- 
clared "That so marked was this characteristic inR Clement, 
that he considered he was specially chosen hy God to revive 
the languishing Faith of the Viennese and rouse those whom 
the evil spirit of the times had filled with doubts or indif- 
ference." 

It would be too long to quote all the evidence given by 
his disciples on this subject: but Father F. Binn mentions 
the joy with which he used to relate a story of St. Louis King 
of France, who, when he was told one day that Jesus was 
actually visible in the Blessed Sacrament and urged to run 
and see it, answered: "Let unbelievers go and solve their 
doubts : as for me, my Faith does not need either miracles 
or arguments." With joy would F. Clement have shed his 
blood in defence of this or any other Truth. He had one 
thing ever before his eyes and in his heart, and that was, 
the thought of God and Eternity. This simple rule for all 
his thoughts, wishes and actions could not be disturbed by 
anybody or anything. In converting or directing souls, he 
had no other weapons save the simple Catholic Faith and 
the practice of the Church. He had a great esteem for human 
learning and natural sciences: but he would often say that 
he preferred the science of the Saints and added: "Quoniam 
non cognovi litteraturam , introibo in potentias Domini '. (Ps. 20. 1 6 V.) 

Father Czech, speaking of F. Clement's burning Faith, 
wound up by saying : "Such was the power of his reasoning 
and the evident conviction with which he spoke, that he 
persuaded the most incredulous; and even enkindled the 
flame of Faith more brightly in the hearts of his spiritual 
sons." 

He would exclaim sometimes to the nuns: "I cannot 
understand how a man can live without Faith. A man with- 
out Faith is like a fish out of water." At other times he 
would say : "I am proud and vain and a great sinner, who 
knows nothing : but one thing I possess , by the grace of 



inflamed the Viennese with a like Ardour. 171 

God, and that is, to be a thorough-going Catholic. I would not 
exchange my Faith for that of any one. Of no other thing 
can I glory save that of being a Catholic!" 

This living and ardent Faith was clearly shown in the 
folloAving prayer, which, if not actually written by him (as 
we believe) was printed and distributed by him whenever he 
had the opportunity. We will here translate it as closely as 
we can. 

"O ! my Redeemer ! Is it possible that that terrible moment 
is come in which few Christians remain who are filled with 
the spirit of Faith? that moment in which Thy wrath will 
be provoked into withdrawing from us Thy holy protection? 
Have the vices, the evil habits of Thy children irrevocably 
moved Thee, in Thy justice, to take vengeance on our sins? 
O ! Divine Author and Consummator of our Faith, we in- 
treat Thee, in the bitterness of our humbled and contrite 
hearts, not to permit the grand light of Faith to be quenched 
within us. Remember Thy mercies of old. Cast a look of 
compassion on the Vineyard which Thou hast planted with 
Thy right hand, and which Thou hast irrigated with Thine 
own precious Blood and with the blood of so many thousand 
martyrs, with the tears of so many generous penitents, with 
the sweat of so many apostles, with the prayers of so many 
confessors and innocent virgins. O! Divine Mediator! be- 
hold those zealous souls who lift up their hearts incessantly 
to Thee to obtain the preservation of their most precious 
treasure, the true Faith. Suspend, O ! Just God, the decree 
of our reprobation : turn away Thine eyes from our infideli- 
ties and fix them on the precious and adorable Blood, which 
was shed on the cross to purchase the salvation of men and 
which is daily offered up for us on our altars. Keep us all 
in our true Catholic and Roman Faith. 

Let sickness and sorrows and troubles come upon us, if 
Thou wilt — but leave us our holy Faith. For, if we possess 
that precious gift, willingly shall we bear all sufferings, and 



172 F. Clement ivith his Faith and Zeal 

nothing can affect our happiness. On the other hand, without 
this treasure of Faith, our miseries would he unspeakable 
and illimitable. O ! Good Jesus ! author of our Faith, pre- 
serve it to us pure : keep us within the bark of Peter, make us 
faithful and obedient to his Successor and Thy Vicar here on 
earth, so that the unity of Thy Church may be preserved, 
her holiness promoted, the Apostolic See protected and the 
Universal Church extended to save the souls of all men. 

O ! Jesus ! Author of our Faith , preserve and enlighten 
our Sovereign: convert and humble the enemies of Thy 
Church: concede to all Christian Princes and to their sub- 
jects the spirit of peace and true unity. Comfort and pre- 
serve us in Thy holy service, so that in Thee we may live 
and in Thee die. O! Jesus! Author of our Faith, for Thee 
Hive, for Thee I die!" 

F. Clement exhorted likewise his penitents to pray spe- 
cially for perseverance in the Faith and for this purpose he 
recommended to them the following prayer: 

"O ! Father of mercy, look upon the face of Thy Christ, 
who in the days of His flesh offered up unto Thee strong 
prayers and supplications and tears for Thy spouse and our 
mother, .the Church. Behold, O ! Father, that bloody sweat, 
that crown of thorns, those pierced hands and feet, the 
wounds of our Brother Jesus Christ. Listen O ! Father to 
the groans of Thy Beloved Son on the Cross; the heavens 
were opened, the rocks were rent, and will not Thy mercy 
be moved towards us? Preserve in Thy holy Faith all those 
who confess to Thee with a sincere and contrite heart. De- 
fend them from false prophets, who go about in sheep's 
clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. Blunt the edge 
of their weapons so that their evil counsels may come to 
nought and they themselves be covered with confusion. O ! 
merciful God ! grant to those that believe in Thee, the grace 
to live in unity and concord: to love Thee with perfect 



inflamed the Viennese with a like Ardour. 173 

charity: to follow Thee faithfully unto death, ever persever- 
ing in Thy holy service, and finally to praise and bless Thee 
for ever in eternity. Amen.* 

In the strength of his Faith, F. Clement did not much 
care for a multiplicity of arguments wherewith to prove it; 
on the contrary, he wished that our weak reasoning should 
hold itself at a respectful distance from the sublime myste- 
ries of Faith rather than strive to investigate their depths. 
His disciple F. Madlener, relates "that he considered the 
arguments drawn from reason to prove any particular truth 
in religion, were only useful for beginners : and that more 
solid arguments could be drawn from the history in which 
God has revealed himself. The Catholic Church was to him 
the most culminating fact in history." On this point Car- 
dinal Rauscher remarks : "The heralds of infidelity in these 
days do not like religious disputes and pretend that these 
are antiquated subjects, which modern progress should con- 
sign to oblivion. Yet, they often dispute themselves, espe- 
cially on the preambles of Faith, which they either combat 
with new sophisms or elude with insidious interpretations. 
F. Clement despised all such artifices. One day when I was 
speaking to him about the proofs of Christianity, he replied 
that he thought the very existence of the Church was an 
abundant proof in itself of its truth. And I am convinced 
that the example of his fervent and undoubting Faith, acting 
as it did with such charity, had far more effect and worked 
far more conversions than others did with the most learned 
and subtle arguments." 

"He hated", added another witness, "the vain disputations 
of which the Germans are so fond and by which they searched 
at a distance for the Truth which God has put within reach 

* Sister Thaddeus Taxboeck, a lay sister among the Ursulines, heard 
these prayers from the mouth of F. Clement himself, by whom they were 
indelibly impressed on her memory. 



174 F. Clement ivith his Faith and Zeal 

of all. For this reason, his sermons and exhortations were 
supremely simple and straightforward; and with peculiar 
pleasure he would quote those words of our Lord : "I confess 
to Thee, O ! Father Lord of heaven and earth, because thou 
hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast 
revealed them to little ones." (XL St. Mat. 25. v.) And this 
simplicity and humility in F. Clement was not without its 
reward: as such supernatural lights shone forth in his rea- 
soning that he seemed imbued with extraordinary know- 
ledge. He always declared, in his humility, "that he had 
never learnt anything" : but all those who heard him were 
in admiration at his profound wisdom and learning and very 
justly believed that God, by a special grace, and in some 
supernatural manner, had infused into him such treasures 
of knowledge that he could instruct the most learned among 
his auditors. 

"In fact", as F. Krai attests, "he had scarcely any time for 
study as a boy : then a long period of his life was spent as 
a baker and also a portion as a hermit, so that during that 
time, he lost the little knowledge he had acquired as a youth. 
Even his philosophical and theological studies were made 
in an incredibly short time: and no sooner had he been 
ordained priest than he found himself overwhelmed with 
work and charged with such laborious functions that the mar- 
vel is how he could ever have acquired the deep science 
which excited such admiration in all who knew him. The 
most learned Theologians would often propound difficult 
questions and doubts to him : yet he always answered clearly 
and correctly. If any writings were submitted to him or any 
new book of which he was asked to give an opinion, he 
would point out at once, in a few brief words, what he con- 
sidered the imprudent or doubtful passages ; and sometime 
would smilingly add: "You know I have a keen Catholic nose" 
With this joke or another he would always pass off any 
comments on his extraordinary wisdom, and thus hide the 



inflamed the Viennese with a like Ardour. 175 

particular lights which he had undoubtedly received from 
Heaven." 

Another of his disciples, Canon Veith, whose acute intel- 
ligence was well-known in Vienna, thus speaks on the same 
subject: 

"Father Clement, with admirable acumen and promptness, 
would, when necessary, give the clearest judgment on any 
literary production whether poetry or prose ; as well as on 
dogmatic speculations, mystical doctrines or learned hypo- 
theses. Nor could he althogether conceal the fact that these 
extraordinary supernatural lights on such scientific and dif- 
ficult subjects came direct from God: which I can prove by 
certain words which now and then escaped him inadvert- 
ently, especially when he raised his finger towards heaven." 
There were also certain cures which were attributed to clair- 
voyants and mesmerical influences, which he absolutely 
condemned and rejected. 

"I cannot imagine", wrote another witness, "where F. Cle- 
ment made his studies : but I know that in all theological 
matters he was profoundly versed and looked upon as a real 
authority. I and my friends used often to listen with sur- 
prise at his vast knowledge and still more at the ease with 
which he would unravel the most intricate theological ques- 
tions." 

The strong Faith which we have mentioned as Father 
Clement's characteristic, and which captivated his intellect 
to the obedience of Christ, produced the most salutary effects 
on his own heart. All that was noblest and grandest, when 
viewed in the clear light of Faith, became the object of his 
thoughts and wishes : hence arose the great consolation he 
derived from prayer; his extraordinary recollection of spirit; 
his profound respect for everything pertaining to God — in 
a word, all the virtues which are summed up in that one 
expression — A Life of Faith. "In that great servant of God" 
as Father Krai writes) "the words of the Gospel were fully 



176 F. Clement with his Faith and Zeal 

verified: 'Where your treasure is there will your heart be 
also.' As God was the continual subject of his thoughts, 
whenever he was not occupied in works of charity, he was 
always praying or meditating." Even when he was walking 
in the streets of Vienna he would say his Rosary, which he 
held hidden under his cloak : and even when he had a com- 
panion with him he would speak little and only when cha- 
rity required it. One day, when he was going to see a sick 
person, after having walked a long time in silence, he turned 
to F. Krai, who was with him and said : "Do you know what 
I have been doing? Saying the Rosary. Won't you do the 
same?" "He would also" (as Cardinal Rauscher relates) 
"often repeat the Rosary of our Holy Redeemer, which is 
composed of 33 'Paternosters' in honour of the 33 years 
which the Son of God passed on earth. In fact, accord- 
ing to the Apostolic precept, he prayed without ceasing. 
His mind had no difficulty in raising itself from external 
things to the God with whom he was ever so closely united : 
and he seemed only to come back to the interests of men 
whenever charity required it. Very often I have seen him 
seated in the midst of his young men with his eyes half closed 
whilst they were reading some edifying book. He was medi- 
tating on Divine things all the while; but from time to 
time he would interrupt the reader to make some wise ob- 
servation or call their attention to a particular point which 
he thought might be edifying or instructive." Another wit- 
ness states : "Whether F. Clement were in the town or in 
the country and whether it were winter or summer, he would 
walk without a hat, covering his head only with a little 
black "beretta", out of respect to the presence of God and 
his Angel Guardian. 

The anxiety he felt to walk always in the presence of 
God and to offer up to Hime very action and word, was only 
equalled by his solicitude to renew continually his purity 
of intention in all his works. Not only was he devoted to 



inflamed the Viennese with a like Ardour. 177 

this particular exercise, repeating continually the words, 
"All for the glory of my God", but he tried to induce every 
one around him to practise the same. We have a little for- 
mula for this purpose drawn up by him and which he taught 
to Sister Thaddeus, of which we will here give a trans- 
lation. 

"My Creator, my Lord and my God ! my desires are not 
hidden from Thee, nor are my groanings of spirit unknown 
to Thee. Yet, as the necessities of this life do not permit my 
thoughts to be directed continually to Thee, I make this 
compact with Thee, which I pray may avail for the whole 
week. 

1. Whenever I lift up my eyes to Heaven, it is with the 
intention of glorifying and blessing Thy divine perfections, 
Thine omnipotence, Thy infinite wisdom, Thy goodness and 
Thy justice. 

2. Whenever I open or shut my eyes, it is with the in- 
tention of magnifying and praising all the actions and works 
of Thy only-begotten Son and of all Thy Saints and of the 
Just (whether past, present or future^ , if done to Thy glory, 
of which I earnestly desire to become a participator. 

3. Whenever I breathe, it is with the intention of offering 
up the life, passion and blood of our Holy Redeemer Jesus, 
together with the merits of all the Saints, to Thy eternal 
glory, for the salvation of the whole world and as a satisfac- 
tion for all sin. 

4. As often as my heart beats in my breast, so often do I 
curse and detest each and every sin, whether of my own or 
of others, committed, since the beginning of the world, 
against the glory of Thy holy Name, which I would wish to 
be able to wipe out with my blood. 

5. Finally, whenever I shall move hand or foot, so often 
do I intend to submit myself entirely to Thy most holy 
will, desiring only that it may be done in all things. 

So that this five-fold compact should never be broken, I 

12 



178 2 he Devotion of I '. Clement 

confirm and seal it with the Five Wounds of Jesus Christ ; 
and I will that it may always he valid even should I not re- 
member each intention at the time myself. Amen." 

This formula abundantly expresses the generous and 
living faith of F. Clement and marvellously confirms the 
wise judgment formed of his character by Cardinal Rauscher. 



CHAPTER IV. 

The devotion of F. Clement for the mysteries of otjr Re- 
demption. His zeal for the worthy celebration of the 
Divine offices. 

THE fruits of a lively and healthy faith are always seen 
in the practices of piety used by holy souls. These practices 
vary according to different natures and dispositions. Thus, 
one has a special devotion to certain mysteries in our Faith : 
another to some special operation of God's love and mercy: a 
third will venerate some particular Saint in Heaven, and so 
each and all of these practices of devotion contribute to form 
that beautiful many-coloured vestment with which our mo- 
ther the Church is adorned by her faithful children. 

With regard to F. Clement, all the witnesses in the cause 
of his beatification were agreeed on one point: and that was, 
that his special devotion was given to the sublime mysteries 
of the incarnation, passion and death of our Holy Redeemer : 
and to the Blessed Sacrament on the altar. 

In fact, his devotion to the mysteries of the Sacred In- 
fancy were peculiary strong and tender. Each time that he 
watched by the Crib, he was filled with the sweetest feelings 
of joy, gratitude, humility and compassion, contemplating 
the Divine Majesty reduced to such poverty. Advent and 
Christmas-tides used to fill him with holy exultation. He 
never lost an opportunity of striving to kindle in other hearts 
some of the burning: love which filled his own : nor could he 



for the Mysteries of our Religion. 179 

refrain from bringing forward the subject to his intimates; 
or from dwelling in the pulpit on the feeling which abounded 
in his own heart. He would point out to his hearers how 
wonderfully our Lord had honoured human nature even 
beyond the Angelic one, seeing that He himself assumed it 
for us , although the "Seed of Abraham" understood it not. 
On Christmas Day he took care to explain to the people the 
significance of the three masses which each priest celebrates 
on that day, namely, to honour the triple generation of the 
word: the eternal, the temporal and the mystic. "The first 
mass", he would say, "is said at midinght when all is dark 
and nothing is to be seen: so, to our poor intellect, the 
eternal generation of the Son in the bosom of the Father, 
is utterly dark and incomprehensible. The second mass is 
said at dawn, that is, when darkness and light are mingled: 
this denotes that the temporal birth of the Son of God in 
the womb of Mary though partly incomprehensible to our 
intellect, is in part made clear. The third mass is said in 
the morning, when everything can be clearly seen: for 
equally clear to our minds is the spiritual birth of Jesus in 
our hearts, producing in us so sensible an amendment." 

But to understand still better his Christmas feelings, we 
will again refer to some devout exercises given by him to 
Sister Thaddeus for Advent. 

1 . "Excite continually in your heart a lively faith in the 
mystery of the Divine Incarnation. 

2. Adore the Son of God for us made man and now pres- 
ent in the Sacrament on the altar, with the same sentiments 
and affection with which the Blessed Virgin adored Him 
when she had conceived by the Holy Ghost. Do this in a 
special manner during Holy Mass, when, at the Creed the 
priest kneeling , says the words : c Et incarnatus est de Spiriiu 
Sane to . ' 

3. Thank the Divine Father who deigned to send His only 
begotten Son : Thank the Son of God , who made himself 



180 The Devotion of F. Clement 

man for our salvation : and thank the Holy Spirit, through 
whom the Blessed Virgin became the Mother of God. 

4. Say the 'Angelus 1 on your knees when you hear the 
sound of the bell and renew these exercises. Many are the 
indulgences granted by the Sovereign Pontiffs to a devont 
recitation of the 'Angelas' . 

5. Make some special act of humility, to honour the hu- 
mility of the Son of God. 

6. Practise some act of mortification during the Fridays 
in Advent, according to your state or position. 

7 . Offer yourself to God every morning in union with the 
Sacrifice of Jesus for our salvation." 



The love which F. Clement bore the Infant Jesus induced 
him to have an engraving done on copper of His image in 
the Crib which he afterwards distributed everywhere. This 
was the first holy picture that had been seen for ages in that 
country, as the use of them had been entirely forgotten. 
Later on, he had another done of the Sacred Heart. 

The next great devotion of F. Clement was to the dolorous 
passion of our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

He could not even think of the agonies He suffered 
without being filled with the deepest sorrow and the ten- 
derest compassion ; so that when he had to preach or speak 
on the subject he was often unable to continue from sobs 
and sighing. He exhorted all his penitents to meditate con- 
tinually on the Passion of Jesus and to accept all suffering 
willingly for the love of Him. 

Father Pajalich writes: "That he would continually re- 
mind his hearers how our Lord by His sufferings had sancti- 
fied all our sorrows and all our actions, if only they be offered 
up in union with the actions of Jesus." 

No less striking was the devotion of this servant of God 
towards the admirable Sacrament of the altar which has 
never failed, since its origin, to draw holy souls so power- 



for the Mysteries of our Religion. 181 

fully to itself. Even when he was a lad he would remain in 
the church of St. Saviour's in Vienna to serve every mass 
from six o'clock till midday: then at Warsaw and later on, 
at Vienna, he would spend hours in humhle adoration be- 
fore the Blessed Sacrament ; and when It was exposed, would 
pass the whole night before It. When he was offering the 
Holy Sacrifice, at the moment of Holy Communion, tears 
of love and tenderness would course down his cheeks. And 
the older he grew, the more fervent he became : so that in- 
stead of tepidity in this devotion, each year saw him more 
tender and ardent. 

If he came into a church or passed before the Blessed 
Sacrament, he would kneel instantly and adore His Re- 
deemer for several minutes with the utmost fervour. Towards 
the middle or end of his sermons, he would exclaim with 
ardent love: "O! admirable Sacrament! O! tremendous 
mystery ! before which the Angels prostrate themselves with 
trembling, we adore Thee!" He insisted besides on the Ur- 
sulincs praising and adoring Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament 
every hour exclaiming: "may the most holy Sacrament of the 
altar be praised and exalted by me and every other creature now and 
in eternity /" 

He would speak of this august Sacrament in the most 
moving way from the pulpit and exhorted every one wor- 
thily and frequently to receive Holy Communion. His ten- 
der devotion to this mystery would be shown by frequent 
and almost unconscious ejaculations such as: "O! good 
Jesus! O! great and most amiable Good! O! Sacrament 
most holy ! O ! Sacrament Divine ! All praise and all thanks- 
giving be every moment Thine !" 

He made a point of visiting the churches in which the 
Blessed Sacrament was exposed during the 40 hours and 
exhorted every one to practice this devotion and thereby 
gain the indulgences attached to it, besides praying there 
for the conversion of poor sinners. 



182 The Devotion of F. Clement 

When he was himself in adoration before the Blessed 
Sacrament exposed , he appeared like a man transfigured : 
and when he had to bear It in procession, or to the sick, his 
extraordinary recollection and the evident love he felt to- 
wards Him whom he carried, struck all who watched him. 
When he blessed the people with the Blessed Sacrament, 
his face was so transfigured that it touched every one and 
it seemed as if he saw Him whom he loved, not under the 
veil of faith, but actually face to face. 

His greatest happiness was to give Communion to a large 
number of people and to take it to the sick. He implored 
every one who passed by a church to raise their hats as an 
act of reverence towards the Blessed Sacrament within: and 
still more did he inculcate spiritual communion several 
times a day and a visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, 
as an efficacious means of maintaining oneself continually 
united with God. 

Frequent Communion in those days was very rare and in 
fact, we may say almost unknown, especially among students : 
but F. Clement contrived to introduce it among his peni- 
tents and in that way drew many young men away from a 
wordly life and gained them entirely to the service of God. 
This success was the more marvellous because the clerical 
state was at that time very much looked down upon and 
consequently rarely embraced by young men of good birth 
or position. Most touching was it to watch F. Clement dur- 
ing the celebration of Holy Mass. Of this Cardinal Rauscher 
speaks as follows : 

"If, in all the Sacred functions he performed we were 
struck with the great fire of charity which burned in his 
heart, still more remarkable was his manner while offering 
the Holy Sacrifice, when he seemed as it were, consumed 
with Divine Love." 

And the Ursuline Sister, Welschenau, mentions "that this 
great servant of God, by his sacerdotal life still more than 



for the Mysteries of our Religion. 183 

by his preaching, contributed in a wonderful manner to 
raise the dignity of his office and give splendour to all di- 
vine functions. His manner in church was such that it im- 
pressed the whole Congregation with increased reverence 
and devotion: and when he walked down the Aisle they 
spontaneously rose to their feet and regarded him with eyes 
full of respectful admiration. Then when he had vested for 
mass and walked up to the altar to offer the Holy Sacrifice, 
he appeared indeed full of majesty and dignity as a true 
Vicar of Jesus Christ. Faith and devotion shone in his face, 
so that he seemed as a Seraph burning with the love of God 
and entirely absorbed in the contemplation of His infinite 
perfections. No one could look at him at such times with- 
out feeling himself moved to increased devotion and having 
his mind impressed with a more exalted idea of this tre- 
mendous sacrifice. There was nothing in the least affected 
or exaggerated in his way of celebrating : but all came from 
his pure soul being so full of the God Whom he daily held 
in his hands. 

"Many of us could not resist watching him", wrote Sister 
Giacomina, "but I was the most curious of all. One day I 
remained in the Choir in a little corner looking down into 
the church to see him go back to his house. He came 
out of the sacristy and thinking himself entirely alone and 
unseen, he prostrated himself on the altar steps and thence 
with inexpressible love and reverence threw a kiss to his 
hidden God in the tabernacle. Truly were the words realised 
in our holy spiritual Father: "Where your treasure is there will 
your heart he also." 

Canon Veith, speaking of this, added: "When F. Clement 
said the prayers before mass, he always recited them with 
such compunction that one felt he considered himself un- 
worthy to offer the Holy Sacrifice.'' And another wrote: 
"One day after preaching, he went to say mass and when he 
came to the L Confiteor' he repeated it with such an evident 



184 The Devotion of F. Clement > 

realisation of his own unworthiness that I never forgot it, 
although, it is now 44 years ago. He seemed to feel contri- 
tion for all the sinners in the world." In spite of the tears 
he often shed during mass and while giving Communion, it 
never prevented his observing the rubric in its most minute 
details. With his really sublime dignity and devotion he 
exercised unconsciously the most salutary influence over 
his servers and many of his disciples and friends would 
strive to be near him in the chancel for their greater edifi- 
cation, among whom we may mention Monsignor Muzzi, 
who was then Auditor to the Nunzio* and who often came 
to the Ursuline Church for this sole purpose. Especially 
after the consecration and when he was making his thanks- 
giving after mass, his face was all aglow with Faith in 
the real presence of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament ; so 
much so that he was almost wrapt out of himself. Neither 
illness nor journies ever prevented his celebrating this 
august Sacrifice. Very often, with extraordinary humility, 
he would serve as Subdeacon to young priests who were 
celebrating their masses before the Blessed Sacrament ex- 
posed, to the great edification of the assistants. And the same 
anxiety he had shown in Warsaw for the highest possible 
honour to be paid to our Sacramental Lord, he did not fail 
to exhibit in Vienna. 

When he first came to be Rector of the Ursuline Church, 
he found it deserted and neglected in every possible way: 
the chasubles were old and in rags and there were no orna- 
ments whatever on the altars. But he determined at once 
to supply these deficiencies. First, he had the whole church 
cleaned ; and then, with the help of a few generous benefac- 
tors, he, by degrees, obtained not only necessary but even 

* Monsignor Giovanni Muzzi was sent later as Delegate and Vicar 
Apostolic to Chili, when he took with him a young priest as companion, 
Giovanni Mastai-Feretti, who afterwards hecame Pope under the title of 
Pius IX. Monsignor Muzzi died Bishop of Citta di Castello. 



for the Mysteries of our Religion. 185 

beautiful things for its adornment. He was the first who 
had the courage to defy the Josephin decree as to the num- 
ber of candles to be used at mass and in other functions ; 
and to reestablish the good old Roman custom of illuminat- 
ing and decorating the altars with as much splendour as 
possible, especially when the Blessed Sacrament was exposed. 
In proportion to his love for our Lord was his anxiety for 
the decoration of His house, in which everything, in his opin- 
ion, should conduce to the glory of the Divine Majesty 
and awake in men's minds befitting reverence for all things 
pertaining to God. In no other church in Vienna not even 
in the Cathedral of St. Stephen, were sacred functions cele- 
brated with half the dignity or pomp which was found in 
the Ursuline Church. On the Eve of each Festival F. Cle- 
ment would announce it and preach upon it to the people ; 
and to impress it the more vividly on their minds, he had 
paintings hung up representing the Mystery or the Saint in 
whose honour the Feast was to be celebrated. According to 
the spirit of St. Alphonsus he took great pains with the 
music also and insisted on plenty of candles and fresh flow- 
ers for the altars. In the same way, during Holy week he 
used to get a certain number of the students from the great 
Seminary to sing "Tenebrce" and help him with the functions, 
which contributed greatly to the edification of the Congre- 
gation. Above all, the Feast of Corpus Christi was kept 
(during the whole octave) with extraordinary solemnity. 
Every day there was a procession in the church, he himself 
bearing the Blessed Sacrament with the tenderest reverence 
and devotion : and at the end he would intone the " Te Deum" 
with a joy which led all the Congregation to join in it. It 
was the same with the "Forty Hours", when he would in- 
treat the Apostolic Nunzio, to lead the procession. In this 
way, while satisfying his own devotion, he had the conso- 
lation of finding this church once so neglected and desolate, 
thronged with devout worshippers from all parts of the 



1 86 His Devotion to our Lady, to the Saints 

city. In no other church in Vienna, were there so many 
communions and confessions. A great many priests came 
also there to say mass, attracted both by the beauty of the 
church and the holiness of the Rector. Among these were 
the Nunzio, Cardinal Rudolph, brother of the Emperor 
Francis I., Cardinal Prince Odescalchi and many others, 
Lastly Dr. Grief, Tutor of young Prince Frederick Schwar- 
zenberg often said mass in this church, served by this very 
young Prince, who became afterwards Cardinal and Bishop 
of the Church at Prague. 



CHAPTER V. 

His devotion to our Lady, to the Saints and to the Soils 
in Purgatory. 

AS in so many other points, so in devotion to the Blessed 
Virgin F. Clement was a faithful imitator of his spiritual 
Father, St. Alphonsus. He delighted in speaking in the 
Pulpit of the glories and greatness of the Virgin Mary and 
it seemed as if on such occasions he had borrowed the fire of 
St. Bernard, so glowing were his panegyrics and so com- 
pletely did he carry away the hearts of his audience by his 
words. Once, when he had come down from the pulpit into 
the sacristy, he went on unconsciously exclaiming: "Ecce 
tu pulchra es Arnica mea, ecce tu pulchra es" (Cant. 14.) He 
could not bear to hear her called simply "Mary", but said 
that there should always be added one of her titles of 
honour, such as Blessed, most Pure, Virgin full of grace, 
Mother of mercy, Refuge of sinners and the like. Once 
when a friend of his spoke of "Mary" in this bare way. 
Father Clement said quickly : "I suppose you mean Mary 
of Egypt?" 

The mystery of her Immaculate Conception, her Dolours, 



\ 



and to the Souls in Purgatory . 187 

and above all, her Annunciation were objects of the tenderest 
devotion to Clement during his whole life. In whatever 
place or under whatever circumstances, he would never 
omit the "Angelus": and it was during its recital that he 
passed away to a better life. Like St. Alphonsus he had 
also a special devotion to Her under the title of our Lady 
of "Good Coujicel"; and in reward he received from her the 
most extraordinary Lights both for his own guidance and 
for that of others. But his great characteristic was his de- 
votion to the Rosary. He called it "his library''' and with 
reason; for he always found in it abundant material for 
meditation on the life and passion of our Blessed Lord and 
fresh thoughts for his sermons. Hence he carried continu- 
ally in his hand a little Rosary given him by Pius VII. 
whether he were walking, or sitting in. the Confessional. 
Having once accidentally lost it, he was quite unhappy and 
begged the Sisters to pray for its recovery : and when their 
prayers had produced the desired result, he said to Sister 
Thaddeus : "You have by finding this Rosary helped in the 
conversion of sinners, for whenever I have recited it for 
any particular person, I have always obtained his con- 
version." He consequently frequently exhorted the Ursu- 
lines and others of his Penitents to say the Rosary for 
special intentions of this kind. But he did it with even 
more devotion and faith when it was a question of the con- 
version of a dying person who had not made his confession 
for 30 or 40 years and who had refused to see or listen to 
a priest. How often he would come afterwards to the Ur- 
sulines, his face glowing with pleasure, and exclaim : "Our 
Lord has granted me another soul for whom I had offered 
my Rosary!" 

He had a stock of very small rosaries which he would 
give to young men, so that thev might hold them without 
being seen and would implore them to say them when they 
went out in the evening, so that our Lady might pre- 



188 His Devotion to our Lady, to the Saints 

serve them from all temptations against purity, which are 
so often met with in the streets of a great City. 

"I am convinced", wrote one witness, "that F. Clement in 
that way stopped an innumerable number of sins and saved 
many souls". He had nothing more at heart than to 
diffuse this devotion to the Blessed Virgin; and so, in the 
pulpit as in the confessional, he would warmly recommend 
the invocation of her powerful aid together with confidence 
in her intercession. 

O! how often would he repeat that "no one can enter 
Heaven save through her!" "Have recourse", he exclaimed, 
"in all your necessities to the Blessed Virgin, for she is the 
Mother of mercy and will obtain for you all you need from 
her Divine Son. The Son never refuses the prayers of His 
mother. She found grace before God and it never fails 
her." 

"Beloved Children in Jesus Christ!" he one day said in a 
sermon, "if there be one among you who has lost the Faith 
or is in danger of doing so, make use of this simple and effi- 
cacions remedy. Say each day on your knees with profound 
humility and devotion an l Ave Maria! to our Lady and your 
perplexed souls will find peace". 

At the same time, in dealing with sinners, he took care 
to remind them that the best and truest devotion to the 
Blessed Virgin consisted in the imitation of her virtues. 
In order, still further to show his love and veneration for 
her, he would constantly visit her sanctuaries. He had been 
to Loretto, to Altoetting in Bavaria, to Schoosberg on the 
confines of Moravia and Hungary; and, while at Vienna, 
he would go every year with some of his disciples to the 
sanctuary of Maria-Zell in the Styrian mountains. Seing 
the crowds of people from different nations, who were 
pouring out their prayers in their respective languages to 
this tender Mother, he would often exclaim: "O! come 
hither, ye pretended Philosophers, and tell me what induces 



and to the Souls in Purgatory . 189 

all these poor people to come here from such great distances 
and endure such fatigues and such inconveniences? Who 
is it draws them and leads them to this spot? O! let us 
own, that it is simply their Faith , that mysterious power 
contained in the Catholic Church alone. Philosophers with 
all their fine arguments would never induce one of them 
to stir a foot "beyond their houses, how much less so long 
and painful a pilgrimage ! 

O ! if only the Holy Father in Rome could see this mul- 
titude of believers, what joy it would give him! I feel sure 
he would cry with consolation for what a splendid triumph 
it is for our holy Religion!" 

He took the utmost care that those who made these pil- 
grimages with him should reap abundant spiritual fruits. 
Canon Veith relates that on one occasion he was very much 
distressed because he found in a little church at Dornau 
about a hundred Pilgrims waiting for mass, which he had 
already celebrated. All he could do was to speak to them 
and to hear the confessions of as many as he could. 

Devoted as he was to the Queen of Angels , he honoured 
and venerated likewise the holy Angels and the Saints. 
Towards the Archangel St. Michael, as Patron of the Uni- 
versal Church, he had a great veneration : and his reverence 
for his Guardian Angel was such that he walked continually 
whithout a hat out of respect to one whom he felt was con- 
tinually watching and guarding him, at all times and in all 
places. 

He had also a singular devotion to the Patriarch St. Jo- 
seph and implored his help in every need. "In all your 
necessities", he would say, "have recourse to St. Joseph, for 
he is the Father of the poor and the Orphans and a com- 
forter in all human troubles : but especially invoke him to 
obtain a good and holy Death." 

In the same way he felt a tender devotion to St. Ann; 
and to the holy Apostles, whom he called "The Fathers of 



190 His Devotion to our Lady, to the Saints 

the Church, who had illustrated her not only hy their writ- 
ings and their example, but who had sealed their Faith 
with their Blood." Above all, he honoured St. Peter, to 
whose successors, the Roman Pontiffs, he was so scrupu- 
lously obedient: and among the Apostles he had a special 
devotion for St. Thaddeus and St. James the Great, because 
in a time of great need, he had received special help from 
both. After the suppression of the monastery of St. James, 
the miraculous statue of that Saint was removed to the 
Church of the Ursulines and Father Clement never rested 
till he had solemnly placed it in a Side Chapel over an 
altar, where it is still venerated by the faithful. 

He was also very devout to St. Catherine of Sienna, be- 
cause she had done such great works for the Church and 
the Roman Pontiff: to St. Theresa for her magnificent re- 
vival of the Faith : to St. Athanasius for his heroic defence 
of the Divinity of Christ. He also had a tender affection 
for St. Clare of Montefalco, whose body is still incorrupt : 
for St. Barbara, the protectress of the dying: and for St. 
Luigi Gonzaga and St. Stanislas Kotska, those noble examples 
of youthful and holy purity. 

He never let the Festival of the latter pass without saying 
mass in the room in Vienna, now turned into a Chapel, 
where St. Stanislas, being ill and not permitted to see a 
priest, received Communion from the hands of an Angel. Of 
F. Clement's great devotion to St. John Nepomucen and 
of his pilgrimage to Prague to venerate the shrine of that 
martyr and model of Confessors, we have already spoken. 

We need not speak of the deep love and veneration 
. with which he was penetrated for his Father and Founder 
St. Alphonsus; and in 1816, he had the great joy of seeing 
him raised to the altars of the Church. "I am doing all I 
can," he wrote from Vienna to the Procurator General in 
Rome, "so that the honour of our Father should be ever 
more widely spread. We practice private devotions, have 



and to the Souls in Purgatory. 191 

books and pictures printed and do every thing so that our 
Lord may be glorified in the veneration we pay to the 
Blessed Saint under whose banner we are fighting". 

By means of F. Passerat he transmitted all the money he 
could to Rome to help in the process of the Cannonization. 
Great was his delight when a miracle was wrought through 
the instrumentality of a picture of the Saint. It happened 
as follows. A man previous to leaving Vienna for Knittel- 
feld in Styria went to confession to F. Clement, who, on 
wishing him good bye, gave him a little picture of St. Al- 
phonsus. The man put it in his trunk winding it round a 
little stick for fear of creasing it. Soon after his arrival at 
home, his house took fire and every thing in it was burnt. 
He was away at the moment and on his return anxiously 
looked amidst the ruins for this very trunk which contained 
a certain sum of money. But what was his astonishment 
when he found, that nothing had been spared by the fire, 
save this paper picture of St. Alphonsus ! The two ends of 
the stick were burnt but the print remained untouched. 
The poor man ran to tell the Parish priest and to show him 
what had happened. And the priest having attested the 
fact, rang the Chapel bell and told all the parishioners (who 
hastened to obey the summons) of the marvellous preser- 
vation of the picture ; which was afterwards framed with an 
account of its esape and solemnly exposed to veneration on 
the altar of the Church, where it remains to this day. 

We have not yet spoken of the tender love F. Clement 
felt for the blessed souls in Purgatory. Earnestly did he 
offer up prayers and Sacrifices for these holy prisoners and 
exhort others to offer their prayers and good works as 
suffrages for this same intention. "Such prayers", he would 
say wisely "are never lost ; they always please our Lord and 
bear a merit of their own. In fact, they are of double ad- 
vantage ; for they help the living who pray and the dead for 
whom the prayers are offered." 



192 Father Clement as a Preacher. 

llence he continually exhorted the Ursulines to. acquire 
merit "by good works so as to give them to the souls in pur- 
gatory and wished that they would offer up the mortifica- 
tions, silence, fasts and other practices of their daily life in 
suffrages for them. And he taught them to use the following 
ejaculatory prayer. "My God and Heavenly Father! I offer 
Thee the precious blood of Jesus Christ and all that I do 
this day in union with Him, for the holy souls in purgatory." 
When any Sister died, he never rested till as many masses 
as possible had been said for her soul on that same day and 
it was marvellous how many priests he always found to say 
them. A Lady narrates that one day she came to see F. Cle- 
ment and told him she had seen her defunct husband in a 
vision, apparently very suffering and miserably clothed. 
"Well", he replied : "perhaps he had not done in life as many 
charitable works as lay in his power. Hasten to clothe some 
poor person and offer it up in suffrage for his soul". The 
widow obeyed at once and soon after had the consolation of 
seeing her husband again, looking quite different and thank- 
ind her lovingly. She hastened with the good news to 
Father Clement, who said to her : "That is a sign that he is 
better: but go on helping him with your prayers and alms." 



CHAPTER VI. 

Father Clement as a Preacher. His way of announcing 
the word of god. 

WE have often spoken of the marvellous frint of Father 
Clement's preaching, both at Warsaw and in other places. 
When he became Rector of the Ursuline Church, the first 
question he asked when the Sunday came was , " the hour 
generally fixed for the sermon?" The answer was that ex- 
cept on great Festivals, they were not accustomed to have 
any sermon at all. Nevertheless, Jie ordered the bell to be 



His Way of announcing the Word of God. 193 

rung and without any further preamble went into the pulpit 
and to the astonishment of the nuns began to preach to the 
very few persons present. This soon got wind; and the next 
Sunday a good many more came; till at last the church 
became much too small for the large audience, who even 
listened standing out into the street. 

His method of preaching was very simple and apostolic ; 
yet was not wanting in vigour and zeal and even at times, 
in holy enthusiasm. Cardinal Rauscher speaking of his 
sermons says : " He had never learnt any elegant oratorical 
arts or read any book of profane or classical elocution: 
nevertheless he proved himself a true disciple of one who 
spoke as Jiaving authority. I never heard any preacher whose 
words produced so much effect or wiio knew how to point 
out better the one thing necessary. You could not help car- 
rying away some clear idea of his subject and so he often 
touched the hardest and most indifferent of hearers." 

"When he preached"', added F. Binn, "you could not help 
being moved and filled with a kind of supernatural unction. 
I have heard very learned and eminent ecclesiastics as well 
as laymen say "that one word from his mouth would last 
them for meditation for a whole week". Often when be- 
ginning a discourse he would say : "To-day I shall try and 
speak with such clearness that I hope the smallest child 
may be able to understand me; so that before God's Tri- 
bunal, no one may be able to accuse me and say "I did not 
understand you". 

Canon Veith adds: "There were no set divisions in his 
sermons, nor any flights of rhetoric : yet some of the most 
eminent Prelates of Vienna used to show the greatest 
anxiety to hear him; and a famous Professor, Zaengerle, 
who afterwards became Bishop of Gratz, exclaimed one day : 
"The Holy-Ghost alone could have inspired F. Clement's 
words this morning!" 

The simplicity of his language did not in any way affect 

13 



194 His Way of announcing the Word of God. 

the exactness and depth of his proofs: nor could he help 
revealing his intimate knowledge of Holy Scriptures and of 
the writings of the Fathers of the Church. He explained 
the sublimest mysteries of our Faith with such admirable 
facility that both learned and unlearned were equally satis- 
fied. For instance one day, explaining the words which the 
Church sings on Holy Saturday, "0 felix culpa'' he set forth 
in simple but beautiful language how by the Incarnation of 
the Son of God, we became also sons of God, brothers of 
Christ and heirs of Paradise; so that human nature was 
more exalted before the Throne of the Divine Majesty than 
had it remained without stain in the terrestrial Paradise. 
So great was this mixture in him of simplicity and wisdom 
that F. J. Pilat used frequently to say : "If you wish to hear 
a great orator, go to this or that church. But if you wish 
to hear an Apostle, go to the humble Church of the Ur- 
sulines and listen to F. Clement Hofbauer". Some went 
to mock and ridicule his style : but his apostolic simplicity 
so won upon them, that they would often be converted on 
the spot and remain after it was over to lay down the bur- 
den of their sins at the feet of the preacher in the tribunal 
of Penance. One or two of his devoted friends and who 
became afterwards members of his Congregation, confessed 
that when they first came to hear him , it was solely with 
the idea of laughing at him. On one occasion F. Clement 
perceived a knot of students who, in this way, .were turning 
his sermon into ridicule. He never lost his composure or 
his sweetness; but turning round to them said: "Laugh as 
you will: but remember that he laughs best who laughs 
last": and then quietly went on with his discourse, while 
the ashamed students knew not where to hide them- 
selves from the indignation of the Congregation. Great as 
was his simplicity, equally strong was his zeal. On certain 
occasions he spoke with such vivacity and enthusiasm that 
every one felt how deeply he was penetrated with the truths 



His Way of announcing the Word of God. 195 

which he preached. Canon Veith speaking of this says: 
"It was only in the pulpit that he let go the reins, as it 
were, of his fervour and then his face semed to be positively 
illuminated. His words' rose like a flame and as a sharp 
sword, penetrated into the very hearts of his hearers. When 
he preached, the most perfect silence was kept by the 
crowd, who hung upon his words, which often led to in- 
stantaneous and marvellous conversions." The President of 
the Imperial Diet, Robert von Purkhardt, was so impressed 
by F. Clement's preaching that he spoke of it with admira- 
tion even in extreme old age. "Before 1820", he said, "there 
was great neglect of Church-going in Vienna. But one day 
when I happened to be passing by the Ursuline Church I 
saw a great crowd of people going in. I stopped and asked 
one of them the reason. He replied: "O! don't you know? 
F. Clement is going to preach." 

I thought I would go in too and see what it was that 
attracted all these persons. The argument of the sermon 
was "that man only wanted a good and earnest will and 
that then God would give the strength and grace". F. Cle- 
ment explained this with such zeal and fervour and spoke 
in so apostolic a manner, that I really felt as if he were 
inspired. Afterwards I found out that he was equally 
wonderful in the confessional and in visiting the sick, lead- 
ing all men to a true view of Religion. I know a great 
many very learned and scientific men who cared nothing 
whatever about God or His Commandments before, but 
whom F. Clement converted in the most extraordinary 
manner." 

We must not imagine that his zeal ever led him to use 
exaggerated gestures or expressions: on the contrary, he 
was always as dignified and calm as the lines in his face ; 
but one felt he spoke from his heart and it was his genuine 
earnestness which so greatly impressed his hearers. 

While most of the cotemporary preachers were so im- 



1 96 His Way of announcing the Word of God. 

bued with Josephin principles that they confined their 
teaching to very superficial moralities, he, on the contrary, 
taught Catholic Doctrine in all its extension and purity: 
"To form a true conception of the firmness in the faith of 
F. Clement", writes F. Frederick von Held, "we must re- 
member the indifferentism on the subject which then pre- 
vailed in Vienna. It was the fashion, not only in public 
meetings, and in familiar conversations, but even in the pul- 
pit to avoid any mention of revealed religion. The very 
words which expressed Catholic Truth or even Christianity 
in general, would never be heard or seen save in a voca- 
bulary. Among the great preachers of the day besides F. 
Clement there was not one, save his two intimate friends 
Zangerle and Ziegler, who dared call Catholicism by its 
proper name or speak of its distinctive doctrines. To these 
must be added later Zacchary Werner, who became a faith- 
ful, humble and devoted disciple of F. Clement." 

With equal frankness and freedom he preached on morals 
and customs and with the same intrepidity of soul with 
which the precursor of Christ spoke the terrible words to 
Herod "non licet tibi\ 

But when he was thus compelled to open a wound and 
cut away the cancerous flesh, he did it with such prudence, 
delicacy and gentleness that he never raised a feeling of 
anger or disdain among his audience, but only sentiments 
of salutary shame and confusion and often of sincere and 
humble compunction. 

Sister Thaddeus relates that, one day, preaching on St. 
John the Baptist, he pointed out so forcibly his spirit of 
mortification in spite of his innocence, as contrasted with 
the spirit of self-indulgence and the way in which worldly 
men run after pleasures, however guilty they may be, and 
refuse to suffer the smallest denial of their wishes, that he 
produced an electrical effect on his audience, many of whom 
melted into tears of penitence. 



His Way of announcing the Word of God. 197 

Notwithstanding this popularity, his preaching dis- 
pleased those who thought it far more convenient to go with 
the spirit of the times ; and the Government, who saw with 
an evil eye the results of F.Clement's teaching, sent certain 
secret Agents of Police to hear his sermons and report upon 
their tendency. Once only, however, did he say anything 
which displeased the authorities ; when he received imme- 
diately an order to ahstain from preaching in future. The 
holy man having read the order, burst into tears at the 
thought that he was henceforth to be deprived of so power- 
ful a means of converting those who had gone astray. The 
affair became known in Vienna and caused a great sensa- 
tion. The Sunday came and with it an immense crowd to 
the church, half of whom hoped he would preach, in spite 
of the prohibition; the other half curious to see what he 
would do. F. Clement at the usual time quietly went up into 
the pulpit and read the Gospel of the day. After which he 
simply said : "To-day I cannot speak to you to explain what 
I have read, for it is my duty to obey. But in the Holy Mass 
I shall pray to the Holy Spirit to say to the hearts of each 
one of you here present what I would have gladly preached." 
At these words, many burst into tears. 

The indignation against the Government, however, was 
so great, that in a few days this unjust and arbitrary prohi- 
bition was withdrawn: and F. Clement was allowed to 
preach as before without regard to the perverse spirit of the 
times, caring nothing for the pleasure or displeasure of men 
and feeling as if the command of our Lord to his Apostles : 
"Going, therefore, teach ye all nations" was specially addressed 
to himself. 



198 The -principal Subjects of his Preaching. 



CHAPTER VII. 

The principal subjects of his preaching. His maxims 
and spirit. 

FATHER Bartholomew Pajalich (a worthy disciple of F. 
Clement's) has left us certain interesting details as to his 
manner of preaching and the subjects of his sermons which 
we think may interest our readers. 

During Lent, he would begin a series by dwelling on the 
infinite perfections of God and the end and dignity of man. 
In 1816 he dwelt principally on the works of God in crea- 
tion and his mind was so full of beautiful thoughts and 
feelings that he was never at fault for want of words. His 
only preparation was to have read to him a short commen- 
tary beforehand on the beginning of the book of Genesis. 
The reader, however, was soon stopped by the words: 
"Enough! Enough!" The simple words "Creavit Deus hominem 
ad imaginem suam" or else " Videbimus Deum sicuti est" was ma- 
terial enough for the most moving sermon. 

Among the perfections of God the one he would lay the 
greatest stress on was His extraordinary mercy and loving- 
kindness. Whenever, therefore, he had felt himself com- 
pelled to startle his audience by speaking to them of the 
terrible judgments of God, he would hasten directly after 
to awaken in them feelings of unlimited confidence in the 
divine mercy, representing to them in vivid colours the im- 
mensity of the love of Jesus Christ, and speaking of the pre- 
cious blood shed for our salvation, the agonies suffered for us, 
and the maternal compassion of Mary. He was also indefati- 
gable in his endeavours to encourage the weak, and to con- 
sole troubled souls ; while he infused into the hearts of sin- 
ners, feelings of unbounded confidence in the goodness of 
God, exclaiming at one moment : "Jesus, Son of David, have 
mercy upon us!" at another, Ezechiel's exclamation: "Whyicill 



The principal Subjects of his Preaching. 199 

ye die, 01 ye House of Israel?" ] while in the end, he would 
speak of the rewards God had prepared for the just and 
quote the consoling words spoken to Abraham by the Al- 
mighty: "I am thy Protector and thy exceeding great reward." As 
a primary motive for confidence, he would speak of the in- 
finite merits of Jesus, whom, with St. Paul, he would always 
call "that great Mediator between God and man." Often would he 
express his grief at seeing the little confidence shown by 
Christians in the merits of our Lord and exhorted all to 
seek Him with a pure intention feeling certain of finding 
what they sought. If however Father Clement dwelt by 
predilection on the love and mercy of God, he did not omit 
speaking of His justice to proud and obstinate sinners, to 
whom he would often repeat the words of the Apostle : "It 
is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the Living God!" and 
that in such a tone and with such emphasis, that the most 
careless were struck by it. "Ah ! " he would sometimes ex- 
claim, "in these days, when religion is fallen so low, one must 
speak with vigour. In the pulpit we must shake the nuts off 
the trees ; though in the confessional, we may gather them 
up with sweetness and gentleness." 

He was equally zealous for the honour of God and would 
speak of him as a "jealous God" and quote the words of our 
Lord : "/ am come to cast fire on the earth: and what will I but that 
it be kindled"^ (St. Luke XII. chap! 49. v.). 

But his favourite subjects were the mysteries of our Re- 
demption and especially the passion of Christ. In 1816, he 
was invited to preach, on good Friday, on the "Seven words 
of Jesus on the cross": and his own emotion and burning elo- 
quence made the most extraordinary impression on the im- 
mense crowd which had gathered to hear him. He added 
to the effect of his words by having appropriate music sung 
between the meditations of each word. He was never weary 
also of exhorting his disciples to enter into the spirit of the 
Feasts of the Church throughout the year. He would call 



200 The principal Subjects of his Preaching. 

priests "the pupils of God's eye" , and on the Sundays preceed- 
ing the ember-days, he would intreat the faithful to join 
with him in earnest prayer that none but worthy ^priests 
should be admitted into the Church: and that they might 
be filled with truly Apostolic zeal and be ready to preach 
the Gospel to all nations and especially in Germany, where 
infidelity and indifference had made such rapid strides. 
"Think!" he would exclaim, "how by the means of good or 
bad priests, a blessing or a malediction rests upon a people ! 
When, in the Old Testament, no punishment would avail 
to reclaim the Jews from their evil ways, God permitted false 
prophets to be sent to them. Therefore, conjure our Lord 
that He may raise up holy priests; who are the greatest 
blessing to any country and the means of saving each one of 
our souls. Honour them as the messengers of God, remem- 
bering the words of Jesus Christ : "He that honoureth you, 
honoureth me, and he that despiseth you, despiseth me." 

He spoke with a like zeal of the reverence due to the 
head of the Church, the Vicar of Jesus Christ. 

"Whoever does not honour the Holy Father", he would 
say, "dishonours the Church our mother. He who does not 
obey his commands, is equally disobedient to holy Church. 
A son who will not pray for his Father is looked upon as 
bad and perverse : and he who does not pray for the Pope is 
a bad Christian. He who has not the Church for his mother, 
cannot have God as his Father." 

And we must remember that F. Clement spoke in this 
manner at a time when there was not a single preacher in 
Vienna who dared so much as allude to the Church of Rome 
in his sermon ! In the teeth of this dominant heresy and in- 
differentism , he had the courage to exclaim openly : "Out- 
side the pale of the Catholic Church there is no salvation." 
Preaching one day on the words of Ecclesiasticus, 3 rd chapter, 
1 1 th verse : "The father s blessing established the houses of the child- 
ren: but the mother's curse rooteth up the foundation", he applied 



The principal Subjects of his Preaching. 201 

it so beautifully to the Church that the learned Adam Miiller 
was profoundly impressed by it. 

He underwent a real martyrdom for the precepts and 
rights of the Church ; but no persecution availed to prevent 
his defending and observing them. 

He inveighed one day with unusual warmth against those 
who quietly said: "O! what does it signify? It is only a pre- 
cept of the Church!" and to dissuade his audience from ever 
treating such commands lightly, he would quote the exam- 
ples of the Saints recorded in Holy Writ. He exalted the obe- 
dience of Abraham when ordered to sacrifice his son Isaac 
and added : "The heart of the holy Patriarch was filled with 
incredible sorrow at such a command: but did he hesitate 
to obey ? And if our Lord asks so much less of us, how can 
we dare refuse Him? Should we not obey him willingly, 
even with joy in our hearts? and does He not speak to us 
through His Church? And he went on to make many other 
instructive observations on this particular subject; as for 
example, applying it to married people and exhorting them 
to imitate Abraham, who kept God's command a secret from 
all, so as not to throw any difficulties in the way of his obe- 
dience. His sermons always ended by a touching petition, 
in which he called down the blessing of our Lord on his 
hearers and prayed for every grace to be showered down 
upon them and especially that one of which each had most 
need. At the end he always promised to remember them in 
the celebration of the August Sacrifice. On certain solemn 
occasions in the year when the concourse was very great, 
he obtained leave to impart to them the Papal benediction. 
But first, he would make the Sisters in Choir recite the 
Psalm "Miserere", so as to move the hearts of the people to 
penitence and thus to enable them to receive the blessing 
with better dispositions. 

Before concluding this chapter, we will give our readers 
certain maxims collected by Father Clement's illustrious 



202 His Maxims and Spirit. 

and devoted disciple, the late Cardinal Otmaro Rauscher, 
who put them into writing whilst he was labouring at the 
cause of his beatification. 

Sentences and maxims of Father Glememt. 

1. Temperance is the guardian of all other virtues. 

2. A stone rolls easily down a hill: but to roll it upwards 
requires labour and fatigue. 

3. In praying we must imitate the Jews when they were 
rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem : brandishing in one hand 
the sword and in the other the mason's trowel. 

4. When impure thoughts come into our minds we should 
think of them as little as we do of the leaves which fall 
from the trees, or of the words of a scolding woman : that is, 
we must not dwell upon them for a moment and without 
heeding such suggestions from the enemy of souls, go quietly 
on our way. 

5. Sadness is prejudicial to the body and does no good. 

6. We must deal with God as a child does with its 
mother. 

7. It is of no use to force our brains too much: for the 
tension of the nerves only weakens us and we do not advance 
in the least. 

8. When we are conscious of having failed and done 
wrong, we must humble ourselves before God, implore His 
pardon, and then quietly go on our way. Our defects should 
make us humble, but never cowardly. 

9. We must not force ourselves too much to preserve al- 
ways a pure intention. If we make it in the morning in the 
best way we can, let us then go quietly to our daily duties 
without over-anxiety or scruples : like a little child who goes 
simply on its way and only cries out for its mother when it 
meets with some grave difficulty. God will find the means 
for our progress in perfection, if our mill be only right. 



His Maxims and Spirit. 203 

10. We cannot obtain Divine grace by violence. Every- 
thing should be done gently. The Divine Mother suffered a 
greater martyrdom than any other woman , but she was al- 
ways quiet and calm. 

1 1 . The best way to become a Saint is to plunge ourselves 
in the Will of God, as a stone is immersed in the water; 
and allow conselves to be tossed, like a ball, here and there, 
according to His good pleasure. 

12. Let each of us try to engrave deeply in his heart 
a realisation of the sufferings of Christ. A meditation on the 
Passion after Communion or during mass, is the most fruit- 
ful of all devotions : for thus we learn the preciousness of 
our souls in God's sight and feel ourselves powerfully stimu- 
lated to make some return for such exceeding Love. But 
such meditation should not be forced ; and should be done 
gently, as if we were thinking of a very dear friend to whom 
we owed a great debt of gratitude. 

13. When we see a street full of people, let us think of 
the crowd which filled the streets of Jerusalem when our 
Lord was dragged from Pilate to Herod. If we have to go 
into a room where we expect to be badly received, let us 
remember how Caiaphas received our Divine Saviour with 
ironical joy and on whose face we might read the thought: 
"At last we have caught you, O! Great Master!" 

14. He who is careful and watchful over little faults, will 
become perfect in a short time. Most of us want to do great 
things, like preaching or taking the discipline, and in the 
mean time we neglect little things. He who does not esteem 
what is small is not worthy of what is great. 

15. We carry within us a serpent of which we should 
watch every movement, and when it shows itself, we should 
forthwith chase it away. 

16. When we go in or out of the house, when we take 
any thing from one place to the other, whatever we do, in 
fact, let as make a good intention, on which all depends. 



204 His Maxims and Spirit. 

In this way the smallest actions may become great in the 
sight of God. 

17. Let us strive in all things to seek only the approba- 
tion of God. Everything is done well which is done for 
Him. 

18. It is a good and useful thing to practise constantly' 
some little mortification: but this should be done without 
violence or anxiety. Do you want to look at something? 
Do so with half an eye. Do you care for any particular 
food? Take less of it than you would like: and that is 
enough. 

19. In the pulpit we must knock down the nuts from 
the trees, but in the confessional pick them up very gently. 

20. God needs no one for His work. 

21. Only Children and madmen praise themselves to your 
face. 

22. Whether men blame or praise us, we do not cease to 
be solely what we are before God. 

23. Do not let us fear and be anxious about sins already 
forgiven, for those thoughts and images which previously 
brought about our fall, may easily return if we are disposed 
to dwell upon them. Habit has a great power over us and 
if we consent to such thoughts , we may be tempted to the 
same sin in our minds which we before committed in deed. 
Hence we must be very cautious, for we bear a precious 
treasure in a fragile vessel. 

24. The misery of living for a single hour as the enemy 
of God is so great, that even the holiest penitent if not com- 
forted by Divine grace, would die of despair. 

25. At every moment, in some part of the world, Holy 
mass is being celebrated; and each mass is enough to re- 
deem a thousand worlds and to empty hell itself, if mass 
could be offered for the damned. The very death of Christ 
would have been superfluous had it been possible to offer 
Holy mass before. Remember that he who is the friend 



His Maxims and Spirit. 205 

of God , may participate in" all the masses celebrated each 
day and in all the merits of the Church militant all over 
the world. 

26. In the last moments of our lives, we shall see clearly 
all we have done and thought and felt, as well as all we 
should have done and thought and felt, if we had been 
faithful to the grace of God. Then also we shall see the 
effect produced upon others by our actions and words and 
we shall judge ourselves rigorously for the imperfect in- 
tentions with which even our good works have been done. 

2 7 . Man after the fall is infinitely happier than he could 
have been before ; for through Jesus Christ, he is become a 
Son of God and a participator in all Divine graces. One 
thing only is needful: and that is his will. Hence holy 
Church sings: "Of felix Adae culpa!" The angels look with 
astonishment at man, since their God deigned to clothe 
Himself in human flesh : and they would even envy him, if 
they were capable of feeling envy. Had Satan been able to 
foresee that God would save fallen man by so stupendous 
a prodigy, he certainly would not have tempted Adam to 
sin: for if even a single man were to participate in the re- 
demption, Satan would blush for shame for all eternity. 

2S. Jesus willed to redeem us by an ignominious death 
and make thus so abundant an expiation, to prove to us 
the excess of His love which He has shown us in a manner 
truly divine. God could not do more than He has done to 
redeem man: and the reprobate will be forced to confess in 
the last day that they are lost by their oavu fault alone. 

29. The world was created for the elect: and the bad are 
only instruments in the hands of God to prove and purify 
His chosen servants. 

30. When Satan tried to tempt Jesus Christ, he was igno- 
rant of the fact that He was the Son of God and never knew 
it until He had expired on the Cross. Nevertheless, he re- 
cognised that He was a most extraordinary person, and free 



206 F. Clement is powerfully helped in his Apostolate 

from every sin and imperfection. Hence he began to fear 
that He might turn out to be the promised Messiah. On the 
other hand, he could not persuade himself, that the son of 
a humble carpenter, sweating and labouring over his work 
and who was subject to Joseph and Mary, could really be 
the Son of God. 

The Devil is more astute than all the sons of men and 
knows and comprehends all things save humility and obe- 
dience. 

3 1 . We dare not expose ourselves to the risk of commit- 
ting a sin, even if thereby we could hope to empty hell and 
save the whole world. 

32. If God sees that we love anything more than Him, 
He must hate us. 

33. If the Saints in Heaven could be sad, it would be at 
the thought that they had not attained to the higher place 
which God had destined for them through the merits of 
Jesus Christ, had they only made use of the treasures of 
grace at their disposal. St. Theresa appeared to one of her 
sisters after death and told her : "That she would be willing 
to suffer the pains of martyrdom till the day of judgment if 
by this means she could augment her glory, as she might do 
by the recital of one Ave Maria". 



CHAPTER Vni. 

F. Clement is powerfully helped in. his Apostolate by 

Frederick Zacchary Werner. Who this celebrated 

orator was. 

HOWEVER vigorously F. Clement strove by his voice 
to waken the Viennese people from their lethargy, he could 
not do everything by himself. Among the old members of 
his Congregation, he had only two priests with him, Fs. Stark 
and Sabelli: and very often he was obliged to content him- 



by Frederick Zacchary Werner. "101 

self with one , as during the first years of his mission in 
Vienna, F. Sabelli was in Switzerland: and in 1817, F. Stark 
had to accompany Cardinal Severoli to Rome. In addition 
to this, neither of these Fathers were good preachers and 
so were useless in the pulpit. 

But F. Clement had not long to wait before he found 
what he wanted. In the year 1815, God sent him the very 
man for his purpose in the person of Frederick Werner, 
who having arrived in Vienna in the autumn of 1814, was 
instantly attracted by that great servant of God and became 
one of his most devoted friends and most faithful disciples. 

Frederick was born in Konjgsberg on the 18 th of Nov. 
1768. From a boy he showed a great taste for dramatic 
poetry, so much so that in 1789 he published a book of 
poems, but filled with the spirit of the times, that is, with 
sneers against monks, nuns and Jesuits. He was then en- 
thusiastic about Rousseau, and afterwards for Gothe, by 
whom he was much esteemed and distinguished from many 
others. He frequented Kant's lectures and when in Berlin 
maintained amiable relations with the heads of the new 
doctrines, having already been elected a free-mason. In the 
beginning of this century he was a Government official in 
Warsaw and as such very hostile to our Congregation. Re- 
moved to Berlin he was appointed one of the judges in the 
Redemptorist case when F. Iesterheim was summoned be- 
fore his Tribunal; but in that instance he gave a just judge- 
ment. In the year 1807, he composed a drama called 
"Luther, or the Consecration of Force", which was per- 
formed in all German Protestant Theatres and was received 
with great applause. 

In that same year he passed into Switzerland where he 
became acquainted with the Hereditary Prince Louis of 
Bavaria and also with Madame de Stael. From thence he 
bent his steps towards Italy and on the 9 th of December 
1808, he arrived in Rome. But he was hardly settled in the 



208 Who Frederick Zacchary Werner ivas. 

holy City than God determined to show His infinite mercy 
towards him, by calling one who had only thought of glori- 
fying Luther and indulging in his senses, to become a faith- 
ful disciple of the Cross. And he who had called the mass 
"a celebration worthy of asses" and who had said that "he 
would not have "reason" made "to dance to the tune piped 
by a Pope" was to become one of the most faithful and de- 
voted servants of the Holy See. 

"It was in the city of Rome", as Werner writes to Dal- 
berg "that Divine grace first touched my heart : and it was on 
Holy Thursday on the 19 th of April 1810 that I came back 
to the Faith of my Fathers". 

Professor Ostini was his guide in taking this great step, 
to whom he made a general confession. For three years and 
three months he continued under his direction : and as he 
felt himself called to the ecclesiastical state, he was dis- 
pensed from the irregularity of his previous life, when he 
had had three wives in succession, from all of whom he had 
been separated! 

Ordained Priest by the Primate Dalberg, on the 16 th of 
July 1814, he went to Vienna where he lodged next to the 
Servite Fathers. Here he made acquaintance with F. Cle- 
ment Hofbauer and it was enough to see him and talk to 
him two or three times for Werner to be filled with respect 
and admiration for him. Very soon he implored F. Clement 
to take him under his spiritual direction, to whom he sub- 
mitted with great humility and the simplicity and docility 
of a child. 

■ F. Clement soon found out his extraordinary abilities: 
and exhorted him not to hide his light under a bushel, but 
to make use of the great talents which he had received from 
God to preach His word and save souls. In fact, Werner had 
a special power of influencing people of the higher classes 
Avith worldly tendencies, as he had already proved in Rome ; 
and also the great gift of eloquence. His humility suggested 



Who Frederick Zacchary Werner teas. 209 

the objection that having given such great scandal himself 
in old days when he was living in that society, he was un- 
worthy to preach the word of God or to exhort others to 
penitence, when no one needed it so much as himself. 
F. Clement, however, having judged otherwise, Werner 
submitted at once ; although, as he was suffering very much 
from his chest, he felt that this particular work would cost 
him a good deal. 

When he appeared in the pulpit , very great was the im- 
pression he at once produced. The majesty of his figure, his 
great height, his pale, intellectual face, and the long grey 
hair which fell to his shoulders , added to the effect of his 
extraordinary eloquence. Being a born poet, he used the 
most graceful and magnificent imagery and drew what 
might be called word-pictures in a way which enthralled 
and enchanted his hearers. And although this flowery style 
might have, in some way, offended against the simplicity of 
F. Clement's apostolic preaching, yet every one felt that it 
came so naturally from his heart, that it produced a most 
salutary and lasting impression. 

When, for example, he described the terrible scene of the 
last judgment it seemed as if it were actually present to 
him and a cold shudder ran through every one's veins. 
Hence F. Clement called him "The trumpet of the last 
judgment for Vienna". Again, when he alluded, to his past 
life , which was known to many of them, and of the great 
mercy of God which had saved him on the very brink of 
eternal ruin, he did so with such humility and such copious 
tears, that every one was moved to weep with him. He was 
equally eloquent in matters of Faith. Having gone through 
so many phases of unbelief himself, he demonstrated so 
forcibly the blessing and peace of being a son of the Catho- 
lic Church, and the blank desolation of Protestantism, to- 
gether with the endless disunion and divisions existing 
among heretics and so-called philosophers , that he electri- 



210 Who Fred. Zacch. Werner was. 

fled his andience and powerfully moved a large portion of 
the Viennese to return to the bosom of the Church, thus 
vindicating her honour in the very city where she had been 
most contemned. He would constantly produce the Penny 
Catechism in the pulpit and show the people how in this 
little golden gook there was more wisdom and common 
sense than in all the big, learned volumes of pretended phi- 
losophers. Then he would lift up his voice and praise and 
bless God who had dragged him, a miserable sinner, out of 
Egyptian darkness and brought him back into the bosom of 
the one true Church in which he hoped to live and die. 

The impression produced by these sermons was deep and 
lasting. Immense crowds nocked to hear him and espe- 
cially during the Congress of 1815, when he had often 
Sovereigns among his audience. Very much against the 
grain, he was sometimes compelled to go into parties and 
conversaziones at that time: and on one of these occasions, the 
King of Prussia wished to be introduced to him. He re- 
ceived him, however, somewhat coldly and said: "M. Wer- 
ner! I do not like men who leave the Religion in which 
they have been born and bred/' 

Werner replied: "Neither do I, Sire! And therefore I 
left the religion of Luther.'** 

* We have, before our eyes, a letter of the 21st of Sept. 1818 written 
by Werner to the Secretary of Councillor Mayer at Dantzic, in which he 
expresses himself as follows : "Dear brother ! let me speak to you and 
ask you in all seriousness : How is it possible that a man so highly cul- 
tivated and with such acuteness of intelligence as yourself, can give no 
thought to that which is most essential to man? How is it possible that 
one with such an amount of sound sense and ability as yourself should 
not, long ago, have doffed that absurd beretta called Protestantism and 
put on the glorious crown of the Catholic faith, the only one which de- 
serves the name of Christianity ?' 0! I intreat of you to do now what 
you ought to have done long ago and for not doing which you will re- 
pent yourself for all eternity. Remember that the end of man cannot con- 
sist in seeking merely temporal things which are evanescent, but spiritual 
ones which are everlasting. Remember that truth is one .... For the 
love of God, then, make use of the leisure time now granted to you and 



Who Fred. Zacch. Werner was. 211 

He preached sometimes in the Ursuliiie Church, hut as 
he was not sufficiently grounded yet in dogmatic theology, 
F. Clement used to assist at these sermons and if any ex- 
pression escaped him which was not strictly Catholic, he 
would at once tell him of it and oblige him to correct it, 
though prudently, the following Sunday. 

The love and veneration felt by Werner for F. Clement 
was a singular proof of Divine mercy: for the latter could 
not preach to the highest society in Vienna, who yet needed 
instruction more than the poor, their minds having been 
thoroughly corrupted by heretical doctrines, infidel books, 
bad novels and worse plays. And as the Ursuline Church 
was too humble and small and Father Clement's preaching 
too simple to attract people of that sort, it was absolutely 
necessary that a man should be found of Werner's position, 
who should be able to preach in a fashionable Church to a 
fashionable audience and by his extraordinary gifts, and the 
brilliancy of his former position, rouse these people from 
their lethargy : and this Werner did so perfectly that it would 
really seem as if Father Clement had been divinely inspired 
and filled with supernatural wisdom when he urged him to 
undertake the task. In truth, heavenly benedictions never 
ceased to pour upon Werner's sermons; the conversions 
which ensued were as remarkable as they were numerous ; 
and while every one was speaking of him with admiration, 
Werner himself never ceased attributing all these merits to 
F. Clement, whose instructions he eagerly followed. One 
day he was so moved at a sermon of his holy director's, that 
he rushed into the sacristy exclaiming : "He is quite unique : 
no one can be compared to him : it is the Holy Spirit Him- 
self who speaks by his mouth l" 

which death will soon deprive you of, to reflect that (except for those in 
a state of invincible ignorance, which you cannot pretend to be) there 
is no way of obtaining eternal happiness outside the fold of the Catholic 
Church'^ &c. &g. 



212 F. Clement in the Tribunal of Penance. 

Werner confined his labours to the pulpit and rarely 
heard confessions. And when any one came to him as a 
penitent he would say : "Go, instead, to my Master, F. Cle- 
ment". This he also frequently expressed in the pulpit, 
speaking of him with the greatest reverence and saying that 
"he was a man whose shoe-latchet he was not worthy to 
unloose". And such praises from Werner's mouth greatly as- 
sisted in increasing F. Clement's influence even among 
the higher classes: so that these two valiant labourers in 
God's Vineyard, working together and in the same spirit 
produced such extraordinary fruit that they were univer- 
sally and deservedly called: "The two great Apostles of 
Vienna."* 



CHAPTER IX. 

F. Clement in the Tribunal of Penance. His anxiety eor 
the Salvation or Souls. 

A true missionary should always unite the Pulpit with 
the Confessional, showing the people in the former, the 
enormity of their sins and then leading them, in the latter, 
to confess and conquer them. This was eminently F. Cle- 
ment's method and day and night found him occupied in hear- 
ing confessions, having no fixed hours but always accomo- 



* Among the many ■wonderful convvrsions brought about by Werner's 
preaching we will mention the following: 

Lorenzo Studach, born in Alstatter, in the Canton of St. Gall, was 
studying medicine in Vienna and went with all the world, to hear Werner 
preach. At first he listened from pure curiosity : but then something 
which he said touched him so much that he went to call upon him, 
made his general confession to him, gave up the study of medicine and 
determined to become a Priest. He became afterwards confessor of the 
Queen of Sweden and then Vicar Apostolic of Sweden and Norway. After 
the Reformation, he was the first Bishop of Scandinavia. He gave this 
account of his conversion through Werner's preaching in 1862, when he 
was consecrated Bishop in Rome. 



F. Clement in the Tribunal of Penance. 213 

dating himself to the convenience of his penitents and espe- 
cially of the poor and labouring classes. 

It often happened that God gave him special lights during 
his sermons so that he would break off in an argument and 
say sometting which struck to the heart one or other of his 
audience. The following is an instance. 

One day, when he was preaching in the Ursuline Church 
on the torments of a bad conscience, it happened that a 
young man was present named Francis Hatscher, a native 
of Vienna, who, ever since he was a child, had been a great 
subject of anxiety and sorrow to his mother. All of a sudden, 
he disappeared from Vienna, and some said he had enlisted 
in the army and then deserted. The fact was, he had gone into 
France and it was believed that he went as a secret agent of 
the Police. For a long time he remained there ; but when 
the Allied Armies entered Paris he returned to Vienna. As, 
however, he did not dare present himself to his mother, who 
was a very severe person, he wandered about the City 
without any occupation. 

Chance, or rather his Guardian Angel, led him that 
morning into the Ursuline Church and F. Clement's sermon 
made such an impression upon him that he felt as if it were 
addressed solely to himself. The poor boy was so touched 
that he followed the preacher into the sacristy and implored 
him, for the love of God, then and there to hear his con- 
fession. F. Clement pressed his hand and said to him kindly : 
"This is not the moment for you to make your confession. 
Come along with me." So saying, he took him into his own 
house and kept him with him for several days, the only thing 
he asked of him being that he would pray every day for a 
short time before an image of our Lord scourged at the 
pillar, adding : "Here you must learn your lesson." In this 
way poor Francis was gently prepared to make a general 
confession of his whole life which he did with the greatest 
compunction. Then F. Clement asked him "what were his 



214 F. Clement in the Tribunal of Penance. 

future plans?" And Francis having expressed his grief at not 
heing able to go back to his mother, F. Clement answered 
cheerfully: "O! I will see about that!" The next morning 
F. Clement asked the mother to breakfast: and whilst the 
good woman was marvelling at this honour, F. Clement asked 
her about her children. She mentioned them, one by one, 
all except Francis, to whom she never alluded. "But you 
have surely another son, Francis?"' asked F. Clement. 
"Where is he?" "O!" replied the mother angrily "he has 
been lost to us for a long while". 

"People are not lost so easily" replied F. Clement smil- 
ing. "What if he were come home and converted ?" And 
seeing that the woman did not believe him, he opened a 
little door and called Francis, who came with tears in his 
eyes to implore his mother's pardon. She, however, being 
still exasperated at his past conduct, began to scold him 
severely: but F. Clement interrupted her: "Now, that is 
enough", he said gently. "Let us breakfast together and re- 
joice over your meeting." 

Very soon F. Clement found that this very youth had a 
decided religious vocation and great gifts for the apostolic 
life, so he admitted him into the Congregation. After being 
ordained priest, he was sent to Bucharest; and afterwards 
was one of the first missioners sent in 1833 to America, who 
with incredible fatigues converted the savages living on the 
banks of Loch Erie. Here the successor of Father Francis, 
Frederick Baraga (another of F. Clement's disciples) esta- 
blished the Diocese of St. Maria of Marianopoli. Bishop 
Baraga spoke often with great admiration of F. Francis, 
who finally died full of years and merits at Leoben in Styria 
on the 3 rd of January 1863. 

* Very often, a single look of F. Clement's would be enough 
to touch men's hearts and bring about their conversion. A 
certain Schmidt relates that when he was a young man, lie 
went one day to hear mass in the Ursuline Church more 



His Anxiety for the Salvation of Souls. 215 

from habit than devotion and placed himself near the door : 
when, seeing two pretty looking girls higher up in the 
church, he left his place to get near them. At this moment, 
F. Clement who had been to take the Blessed Sacrament to 
a sick person, passed into the church close by the young 
Schmidt, and then, as if suddenly reading his thoughts, 
stopped and looked searchingly at him. This look filled him 
with salutary fear : he thought over his evil intentions , ac- 
knowledged his fault and went at once to confession. In 
1S6S, when this very man was employed in a bank, he men- 
tioned this little incident, attributing to it both his con- 
version at the time and his hopes of ultimate salvation. 

In fact, Father Clement's very presence was sometimes 
enough to lead souls back into the right path. A comic actor 
of the Court Theatre used to come very often to a certain Herr 
von Pilat, to get theatrical articles inserted in the "Austrian 
Observer" of which he was the editor. Hence he often came 
across Father Clement, who was a friend of Pilat' s, but the 
latter remarked that the moment F. Clement came in, the 
comic actor went away. At last he asked him the reason and 
the actor replied : "If I were to be often in that priest's com- 
pany, I should have to give up my acting, which is my great 
delight, and go to confession and be converted ; and I have 
not the courage for this ! " However after a time, the poor 
actor was conquered and went to F. Clement and made his 
confession. But unhappily his conversion did not last long; 
and he was only another proof of how difficult it is to live a 
Christian life and continue on the stage. 

When F. Clement was conscious of having failed in touch- 
ing any unusually hardened heart he had recourse to more 
earnest prayer and additional voluntary mortifications. Sister 
Thaddeus related that one day having remained in choir 
whilst the other Sisters were at dinner, she saw F. Clement 
kneeling on the altar steps, who, thinking himself quite alone 
in the church at that hour, was pleading with God for the 



216 His Anxiety f 07' the Salvation of Souls. 

conversion of a sinner. "01 my Jesus!" he repeated, "my 
much-loved Saviour ! Grant me the grace to win this poor 
soul ! O hearken to my intreaty ! If not, I must turn to Thy 
Mother, who certainly will listen to me!" Having thus 
prayed out loud with tears for some time he threw himself 
on his face on the steps of the altar till Sister Thaddeus was 
so moved at his evident grief that she could only mingle her 
tears and prayers with his. 

If F. Clement thus rescued so many sinners , no less ad- 
mirable was the way in which he trained them after their 
conversion to lead lives of consistent holiness. When Presi- 
dent von Josch was asked whether he had ever seen a 
miracle performed by F. Clement? he replied: "I look upon 
his whole life as a continual miracle : because otherwise, it 
would be impossible to conceive how a man so simple could 
bring about so many astonishing conversions among people 
of every class and contrive afterwards to keep them always 
in the right path/' And Dr. Alliroli, the celebrated translator 
of Holy Scripture and a great oriental scholar, expressed 
himself in the same manner. Canon Veith attests: "That 
the crowd round his Confessional was always the same. 
There you saw people of every class from porters and fruit 
sellers, up to nobles and literary men, who obeyed him with 
the same filial love and submission as if they were his own 
subjects and whom he guided with equal wisdom and cha- 
rity. Among the women whom he directed, were some of 
the greatest ladies in Vienna : among whom were the Prin- 
cess Jablonowska, Countess Constance Pyskiewicz (niece of 
the King Poniatowsky) , Princess Bretzenheim, Countess 
Maria Szecheny, afterwards married to Count Bathyani (who 
founded a house of Sisters of Charity and took the habit 
herself after her husband's death), her sister Sophy, married 
to General Zichy, and another Countess Julia Zichy, whose 
maiden name was Countess Festetics and who at the time of 
the Congress of Vienna was considered to be not only the most 



His Anxiety for the Salvation of Souls. 217 

remarkable , but , according to the Emperor of Russia , the 
most beautiful woman of her time. She died on the 1 8 th of 
Nov. 1816 and had the happiness of being assisted in her 
last moments by F. Clement himself who speaks of her death 
as "that of a Saint". 

Even the Apostlolic Nunzio, Monsgr. Severoli, afterwards 
Cardinal, became his penitent: as also Romano Zangerle, 
Prince Bishop of Gratz, who writes: "Under the guidance 
of F. Clement I made a sort of second novitiate (he was a 
Benedictine to learn from him true asceticism." Cardinal 
Rauscher who became afterwards Archbishop of Vienna, 
never failed to assist at his sermons and was his penitent 
till F. Clement's death: as was also the Bishop of Baraga who 
writing to Pius IX. on the 10 th of October 1865 thus speaks : 
"To Father Clement is due the revival of religion in Vienna, 
which, when he first came to the city, was well nigh ex- 
tinct. Of this I was an eye-witness, as in my youth I was 
for five years in the Vienna University and had the good 
fortune to have F. Clement as my Confessor ichich, till the 
last day of my life, I shall always look upon as one of the greatest 
graces and privileges granted to me by Divine Providence" 

We should only weary our readers if we were to enume- 
rate any more of his illustrious penitents, but we will men- 
tion one only, Lewis I. King of Bavaria, who during the 
Congress of Vienna remained with him nearly a whole night 
discussing spiritual questions and never missed an oppor- 
tunity *of going to him in confession. In addition to these 
eminent personages, there were endless students at the Uni- 
versity, Government officials, Officers in the Army and even 
actors at the theatre, who flocked to him for guidance in 
all matters of conscience. Truly it was a remarkable thing 
to see this poor religious, deprived of all the natural gifts 
and accidents of birth and station which the world appre- 
ciates, thus leading men and women of the most eminent 
rank and learning as well as the poorest and most illiterate, 



218 With what Prudence and Charity 

in the paths of virtue and holiness: and still more mar- 
vellous was it to watch the implicit obedience and docility of 
certain persons towards him, whose habit it was to command 
every body else ! We cannot help feeling that this extra- 
ordinary power was given to Father Clement as a special 
grace by Him who moulds the hearts of men and who chose 
him as a special instrument of His mercy. Many of his peni- 
tents became priests and being thoroughly imbued with 
his spirit did wonders as labourers in their Lord's Vineyard. 
Fathers and mothers, following his wise guidance, trained 
their children in the paths of purity and self-denial. In fact, 
among every class and in every state of life, his influence 
was felt for good, and Cardinal Rauscher spoke truly when 
he said "that the revival of religion in Austria could only 
be attributed to F. Clement, who thus paved the way for the 
future Concordat concluded by that Empire with the Holv 
See." 



CHAPTER X. 

With what prudence and charity he treated his penitents. 

CONFESSION is doubtless a penitential act, felt by every 
one to be more or less painful, but on some it weighs so 
heavily that they can not bring themselves to do it without 
a great struggle. It is, therefore, the business of a wise and 
prudent confessor to diminish this apprehension and remove 
the difficulty. F. Clement had peculiar tact in this matter 
and very often brought about the desired end in a singular 
manner. As an instance of this John Passy relates of his 
brother, Joseph, that having given himself up to bad and 
infidel reading, he, by degrees, lost his faith and finally be- 
came an actor. But the theatre affected his health, so that, 
after a time, he was obliged to give it up and to return from 
Prague to Vienna, where he was discontented and unable to 



he treated his Penitents. 219 

settle to any thing. John brought him to F. Clement, who, 
instead of asking him to go to confession as John expected, 
begged him to come and see him in his room, and like a 
loving Father, began talking to him about his past life and 
what he had been doing. The more they talked the more 
Joseph felt inclined to open his heart to him ; and, at last, 
he told him everything good and bad that he had done. 
When he had finished, F. Clement added gently : "Now, you 
see that without knowing it , you have already made your 
confession. Now kneel down and try and feel a real sorrow 
for the sius of the past." And so helping and encouraging 
him, he made the fullest avowal of his faults, received ab- 
solution and returned to his home at peace with God and 
man. His brother found him entirely changed and from that 
hour till his death he persevered in the practice of all 
Christian virtues. 

Kind and patient as he was in the confessional, yet If. Cle- 
ment never used many words or spent a moment more time 
with each penitent than was necessary. He did not fail, how- 
ever, to convey in those few words the most salutary ad- 
monitions. He had the rare gift of instructing, correcting, 
advising and moving his penitents to sincere contrition and 
earnest resolutions in the fewest possible sentences, so that 
each person went away touched and satisfied. Occasionally 
his advice seemed hard : but those who took it, always found 
that the blessing of God rested upon their obedience. One 
day. a poor servant girl came to him in a beautiful silk 
dress. As she was leaving the confessional, F. Clement asked 
her: "Where she had got this dress?" The girl replied "that 
her mistress had given it to her and wished her to wear it". 
F. Clement replied, "Such clothes are not fit for your sta- 
tion. You should sell it or give it away in charity." The 
girl did so : her mistress was very angry and said that as she 
did not value her gifts, she should leave her service in a 
fortnight. The poor girl in dismay hastened to F. Clement 



220 With what Prudence and Charity 

and told him what had happened. But he comforted her 
and said: "Do not he auxious, you have done what was 
right and God will think of you and find you another situa- 
tion." And so it happened. A nohle Lady having heard the 
story, took her at once into her service ; and also promised 
her a pension when she should be incapable of working, and 
so God rewarded the good servant's obedience. 

It seemed indeed as if Divine Providence had given Fa- 
ther Clement a special insight into people's souls. On this 
point Sister Thaddeus wrote : 

"We had in our convent a postulant who was much 
troubled by temptations as to her religious vocation. One 
day, in fact, the made up her mind to leave the convent, 
when she unexpectedly met F. Clement, who went straight 
up to her and said : 'Francesca, stay in this convent, for you 
are called to it by God.' Such words filled her with amaze- 
ment, for to no one had she manifested her doubts and diffi- 
culties : and it was only afterwards that we any of us knew 
that she had decided to leave us. But F. Clement's words 
removed all her fears, and from that moment she remained 
in the monastery, where she was still living in 1868 when 
the cause of F. Clement's beatification was brought forward, 
though she was then 83 years old." 

Sister Louisa Xavier von Pilat also relates : "One of our 
Sisters, who afterwards became Superior of the house at 
Gleink in Upper Austria, was a penitent of F. Clement's 
when she was in the world. After having heard one of his 
sermons, she felt herself suddenly inspired to become a Re- 
ligious. But her Father having told her that he never would 
give his consent, she dismissed the idea and thought thereby 
she could satisfy her conscience. Although continually 
tormented by the idea, she took care never to reveal her 
struggles in the confessional. Great, therefore, was her 
amazement when one day F. Clement said to her, after she 
had made her confession : 'You must become a Salesian. I 



he treated his Penitents. 221 

will myself see that you shall be received.' She felt that 
our Lord had revealed the thoughts of her heart to him and 
at his words all doubts and hesitation vanished. As he had 
said, the way was made smooth for her at once. She entered 
the Salesian order where she has been for 50 years and has 
never ceased thanking God for the grace of vocation and 
consequent peace which F. Clement's words had thus pro- 
cured for her." 

The same testimony is given by several other persons. He 
seemed to guess the difficulties and temptations of each soul 
and often anticipated their disclosures. Sometimes, when he 
arrived rather earlier than usual at the Ursuline Convent, 
the Sisters would excuse themselves by saying they were not 
prepared. "Come all the same and I will help you", he would 
reply. And then he would make a little examination of con- 
science with them and mingle all with such salutary advice 
and holy consolations that the nuns often said they felt he 
could read their thoughts. "To go to confession and to die 
you should be always ready", he would say to his penitents, 
"for you never know the hour when God will call you." 

Cardinal Rauscher, speaking of F. Clement's prudence in 
the direction of souls, writes as follows : "In all matters but 
especially in the Sacrament of penance, he showed extra- 
ordinary perspicacity and prudence. In a few simple but 
efficacious words he would judge at once what was expe- 
dient for each soul. He was very circumspect in leading the 
souls confided to him in the paths of perfection. He would 
put a curb on that impetuosity of spirit which accompanies 
certain conversions and insisted on everything being done 
quietly. When I was moved by his example to become a 
priest, he would not let me be anything but a Secular : and 
as my parents opposed even this strongly and made every 
sort of difficulty, he advised me to do nothing which looked 
like intemperate haste, but to yield to their wishes for a time 
and go on with my legal studies. He could not bear extremes 



222 With what Prudence and Charity 

in anything. He tried to lead all his penitents by ordinary 
ways and would hide as far as he could any extraordinary 
gifts received from God as being a less safe method. With 
all his tenderness and loving-kindness he knew how to 
humble his penitents when necessary, well knowing that the 
path of humility is that of humiliations." 

One day when instructing Sister Thaddeus, F. Clement 
said : "If ever you fall into your old faults and weaknesses, 
do not lose heart; but trust in God and only try and serve 
Him better in future. Up to the very last days of our lives 
we must watch and pray. And as man, by himself, can do 
nothing to merit Paradise and as all our strength comes 
from God, so we should exercise ourselves greatly in prayer. 
For prayer in the fountain of all graces and virtue, the nour- 
ishment of the soul, the light of the intellect, a medicine 
against temptations and a secure refuge against the assaults 
of the enemy of souls. Let prayer then be your daily bread 
and pray with as much fervour and devotion and recollec- 
tion of spirit as you possibly can, repeating often: "Lord may 
Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven." 

He managed admirably to infuse into others that con- 
fidence in God with which he was himself filled. He was 
also a wonderful consoler of troubled and anxions souls and 
of those who were tormented with scruples. One of his 
Congregation F. Joseph Forthuber, had this spiritual in- 
firmity and at mass he never seemed to finish purifying the 
particles on the patens, to the annoyance of the assistants. 
One day F. Clement was serving him and seeing what he 
was doing, went up to the altar and whispered: "Leave 
something for the angels!" 

There was a certain John Kraus, a spirit merchant in 
Vienna, who tried F. Clement's patience in the same way, 
although a simple, good, pious man, who subsequently be- 
came a priest. This Kraus owned to having heard F. Cle- 



he treated his Penitents. 223 

ment exclaim one day: "One Kraus is enough, two would 
certainly be the death of me!" 

F. Clement showed his gentleness and evangelical pru- 
dence also in the imposition of sacramental penances which 
were never long and often very short. Cardinal Reisach re- 
lates that the wife of a certain Adam Miiller when she made 
her profession of faith , was very much afraid that her sins 
would entail upon her some terrible penance. And when 
F. Clement gave her the easiest one possible, she expressed 
her surprise to him; but he answered: "Well, if you do not 
think it enough accept as a penance the trial God is about 
to send you." She had hardly reached her home than she 
was seized with a most violent toothache and felt that this 
was the penance prophesied by F. Clement; so that she ac- 
cepted it courageously feeling it was sent for the good of her 
soul. In this apostolic manner F. Clement went on his way 
never resting till he had found the sheep that was lost. 
Sister de TVelschenau adds to this picture of his labours, 
the following words : "O ! how happy he was when he had 
succeeded in saving one or two souls! with what love would 
he welcome them ! with what tenderness and paternal affec- 
tion would he gather them, as it were, to his bosom! On 
such occasions his face would really be lit up with a super- 
natural smile and his eyes sparkled with a light which 
seemed to me to be the reflection of that great Light which 
enlightens every man who cometh into the world. He la- 
boured without intermission in this work, hunting up the 
most miserable sinners and never resting till he had ob- 
tained their conversion. His exceeding love and his horror 
of Jansenism, made his piety amiable to all and opened the 
hearts of the most obdurate sinners who, in his hands , be- 
came docile and gentle as little children. God only knows 
what were the fruits of that Confessional in the humble 
little Ursuline Church!" 



224 F. Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns. 

CHAPTER XL 
F. Clement as Director of the Ursueene nuns. 

F. Clement being himself a fervent Religions ; it is easy 
to understand how much he had at heart the welfare of 
Convents and the practice of all monastic virtues. A well- 
regulated Convent was to him as worthy of veneration as 
the House of God. So, he one day said to a Salesian Sister : 
"When I pass your monastery I lift my beretta twice, once 
out of respect for the Blessed Sacrament and once to re- 
verence the spouses of Jesus Christ."' 

He would often say "that Religious never realise till they 
come to die how great is their dignity and how signal a 
grace has been their vocation to a religious state : no human 
glory can he compared to it." Often would he speak in the 
pulpit of the excellence and advantages of a religious voca- 
tion, calling it an Extraordinary Grace and one which when 
received, must be followed, in obedience to the Will of God, 
in spite of all human considerations. As an example he 
would quote our Lord Himself, who, when only twelve years 
old, remained in the temple unknown to His parents : and 
when gently reproved by His mother, answered: "Did you 
not know that I must be about my Father's business?" 

Whenever he saw any sign of a religious vocation among 
his penitents, he cultivated it with the utmost care, so that 
from a small spark, he might develop it into a living flame. 
Many were the souls whom he thus led into the highest 
paths of perfection not only in Vienna, but in Prague and 
in Gratz and in many different orders. It was remarked, 
however, that if present as a Clothing, he only said a few 
words. One who knew him well, replied: "The great joy he 
feels on such occasions really deprives him of the power of 
speech. When I announced my intention of leaving the world 
he was delighted and expressed himself warmly and elo- 



F. Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns. 225 

queiitly on the subject : but when I was professed, he scarcely 
spoke ; yet any one looking at his face could see the great 
joy which filled his soul when any one left the world to 
choose God alone for her portion." 

It is impossible to speak in sufficiently strong terms of 
the great good he effected during the seven years that he 
directed the Ursuline nuns. At the end of 1 8 1 3 regular dis- 
cipline had been much relaxed owing to the state of the 
times : and this wise director resolved , in spite of the re- 
sistance of many of the nuns , to bring back an observance 
of the rules. This he effected by patience and sweetness: 
until those who were most opposed to him were forced to 
confess that he was a Saint. By word and example, he never 
ceased to rouse in their souls a higher esteem for those three 
columns of the Religious life, Poverty, Chastity and Obe- 
dience. " Virgin Souls" he would say "are Sisters of the Angels", 
and when speaking to the nuns of the jealous care with 
which they should guard this jewel, he would mention as 
an additional inducement, the power which such souls have 
in converting sinners. On one occasion at the taking of the 
habit of two choir and two lay sisters , he said : "You must 
unite the two functions of Mary and Martha, that is, prayer 
and work. Jesus restored Lazarus to life because He loved 
both Mary and Martha; and thus the Virgin Spouses of 
Christ must resuscitate the dead, that is sinners, to a life of 
grace : our Lord who loves His spouses, will certainly hear 
their prayers. Even among the Pagan Romans, Virgins were 
so esteemed that the pain of death to malefactors was re- 
mitted at their intercession. O! how much more will a 
spouse of Christ obtain , who has consecrated to Him her 
whole life ! " 

Not less warmly did he recommend obedience. "How 
easy and sweet it is to obey!" he would often exclaim, "and 
on the contrary how heavy a burden it is to have to give 
orders! Obedience puts the sickle to the root and makes 



226 F. Clement as Director of the Ur saline Nuns. 

every road secure. He who obeys can never err, however 
much the superior may be mistaken." 

He exhorted the Ursulines to punctual obedience also, 
following the example of our Lord who was obedient even 
unto death. "Better die than not obey", he would say. One day 
he asked: "Who was the best novice?" and as no one an- 
swered, he went on: "The best is she who obeys humbly 
and who is content even to be as a broom with which one 
sweeps and then puts it into a corner!" 

And then he added: "You are not wanted to be perverse 
but obedient." 

F. Clement was very particular as to their observing the 
Horarium, saying: "That she who observes the Horarium, 
observes likewise the Will of God." 

One day he asked one of the sisters to say an "Ave Maria" 
for the conversion of a sinner : and on her remarking that 
she would do more, he replied : "Those who have consecrated 
their will to God by a vow of obedience, pray far more effi- 
caciously than seculars." 

He himself was a living example of poverty. "It was 
enough to see him", said Sister Thaddeus, "to know he loved 
that virtue. As a priest, who was obliged to observe de- 
cency in his appearance, it was not possible to be more 
poorly dressed. He had only a poor threadbare cloak which 
he had worn at Warsaw. 

He himself mended his own stockings and any other ar- 
ticle of dress as long as it would hold together. One day 
when he had to present himself before the Archduke Maxi- 
milian , this pious Prince was greatly edified at seeing his 
stockings peeping out of the holes in his shoes. During the 
seven years that he was Director of the Ursulines they never 
saw him but once in a new Cassock on the occasion of some 
great Fete and it was such a wonder that they all remarked 
it. He would often say to the Sisters : "Every thing that a 
Sister wears is only lent to her. Jesus is her only treasure." 



F. Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns. 227 

"Poverty," he would add, "is the first Beatitude; the road 
which our Lord Himself pointed out to us through his 
whole life, from the Crib to the Cross and from His birth to 
His deposition in the sepulchre of another." 

Another thing which F. Clement insisted on was that each 
sister should make use of the special gifts she had received 
from God : and that the superior and mistress of novices 
should not treat them all alike, but according to the talents, 
the natural character, the temperament, and the physical 
and moral force of each , and that which he recommended 
to others, he practised himself; so that each sister felt as if 
he were a special Director for herself alone. He was spe- 
cially careful of the lay sisters and often was more pleased 
with them than with the choir nuns. He took care that they 
should not be overworked or overtired, lest they should take 
a dislike to religious life. He changed a practice which was 
in use when he first came to the Ursuline Convent, which 
permitted the choir nuns to go to Communion twice a week 
and the lay sisters only once. He considered the reasons given 
for this practice indefensible and obtained a Decree from 
the Archbishop allowing the lay sisters a like privilege. 

F. Clement, who did not know what idleness meant, and 
who spent every moment in the service of God and of his 
neighbour, could not endure idleness in others especially in 
nuns. "7Vme should be measured by eternity : and very often the 
acquisition of Paradise depends on one moment in onr lives", he 
would exclaim to the Sisters. And the very last sermon he 
preached before his death was on making a good use of 
every instant granted to us. 

"The time is soon coming when no one can work", he 
said. "Each moment we may be doing something for God, 
but the moment that is passed never returns." 

What he most disliked among nuns was their habit of 
complaining of one another, saying : "The worst among them 
are the most rigorous judges of the faults of their neigh- 



228 F. Clement as Director of the Ursullne Nuns. 

bours". When a sister came to him with accusations of that 
sort, his first object was to make her feel that before finding 
fault with others she must first correct her own defects. But 
when he found the accuser was in the right, he would do 
his best to remedy the evil, but still strive to quiet the com- 
plainant lest she should sin against charity. 

Sister Thaddeus writes : "When I first came into the mo- 
nastery I was only 1 6 and knew nothing of religions life or 
Christian perfection. But F. Clement with marvellous pa- 
tience took me in hand and regularly instructed me, giving 
me also certain counsels which I took care to follow, although 
I used to be laughed at for doing so. He knew how to tem- 
per severity with gentleness. One day, a Sister having said 
something derogatory of another, he humbled her by de- 
priving her of communion : but seeing that she accepted the 
humiliation well he gave her leave to go to Holy Commu- 
nion the following day and in this way got her to moderate 
her hot temper. He never would let any of us give way to 
melancholy, which he considered so prejudicial to progress 
in a soul : but exhorted us all to cheerful acceptance of our 
crosses and to striving after a willing conformity to the Di- 
vine Will. Above all, he would have us practise humility, 
as being the foundation of all spiritual joy and vigour. 

"To love God", he would say, "is so great a thing that it 
cannot be described in words : but it is even greater to suffer 
something for His love .... On the cross where our Saviour 
hangs and by His sacred wounds, let us wish to abide for 
evermore!" 

To the lay-sisters who used to get very tired carrying 
wood, he would suggest this little prayer : "O ! Jesus ! give 
me the grace to bear this cross with Thee." 

"Love God and suffer all the little trials of life with re- 
signation", he would say. "Let His love be the motive of all 
your actions ; His holy Will your Law ; His honour and glory 
the end of your being. Do not lose patience in temptation ; 



F. Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns. 229 

but be brave and joyous; and abandon yourself unreservedly 
to the good pleasure of God. Do not murmur against God, 
even should you be externally and internally desolate. Only 
cry out: "Jesus! be my Saviour! Deliver me, for Thy name's 
sake !" Try and serve God from pure love, and never from 
any personal advantage. If your will be fully united to His, 
it will please Him more than any fasting or corporal austeri- 
ties. Pray to your Angel Guardian that he may teach you 
this love of Jesus Christ. How can you say with truth that 
you love God with all your heart, when you are not willing 
to accept the trials which he sends?" 

To an old and infirm nun he suggested the prayer : "My 
Jesus, I wish to live as long as Thou wiliest : I wish to suffer 
as Thou wiliest: I wish to die when Thou wiliest."' 

To Sister Thaddeus he one day said: "In any sickness or 
tribulation, beware lest you lose patience. Keep yourself in 
perfect peace, feeling sure that whatever is sent you is ac- 
cording to His will. Every time you pass before the crucifix 
say reverently." "Father ! not my will but Thine be done, 
in life as in death." 

Sister Thaddeus adds that one day she was full of sadness 
at the delay in her profession, her novitiate having been 
prolongued for five years. F. Clement said to her: "This 
sadness is a vapour which comes from hell and therefore 
weighs so heavily on your mind." And some of the other 
Sisters having replied : "that her noviceship had lasted too 
long," F. Clement quickly answered: "All our lives are in 
reality a novitiate : and it will end only when we shall be 
permitted to join the communion of Saints in Heaven." 

But above all, he was never weary, as we have said, of 
exhorting the Sisters to humility. His favourite ejaculation 
was: "0/ my Lord, may I be humbled, and Thou exalted." "Hu- 
mility", he would say with St. Augustine, "is the mother, the 
nurse, the companion and the consummation of all other 
virtues. The most splendid works have no merit if unaccom- 



230 F. Clement as Director of the Ursuline Nuns. 

panied by humility. It is the compendium of Christ's doc- 
trine, founded on His own words : "Learn of me, for I am 
meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest to your souls '." But 
he would have a true and not a false humility. Often he 
would quote St. Theresa's word's : "Humility is truth. To speak 
and act with humility is an excellent thing provided it be ge- 
nuine." Some make a pretence of humility whose hearts are 
full of pride. The true sign of being really humble is to re- 
ceive humiliations quietly, without bitterness or disturbance 
of mind, but even with joy." In the same way he denned 
humility to be "a firm will to serve others'' : "for a soul that has 
no self-love, does not wish for anything but to be subject 
in everything, to serve others and to help and exalt them ; this 
is true humility." "With which words", observes F. Frede- 
rick Rime, "he, without knowing it, drew an accurate por- 
trait of himself." 

"Do be persuaded", he said to another Sister, "that no one 
does you injustice : and then you will accept gladly, for the 
love of God, any contempt that may be shown to you. And 
do not do anything contrary to the custom of the convent; 
act with prudence and under the shield of obedience : and 
do not fancy that a wish to follow your own inclinations 
and your own will, is any celestial or wise inspiration. The 
exercise of humility, the abnegation of yourself, and the 
mortification of your senses, must be your constant study. 
Instead of being angry or feeling bitter, you should be 
grateful to those who misunderstand and persecute you: 
because in reality they do you a great service." 

With such wise and tender yet strong exhortations F. 
Clement fortified these Sisters to bear the trials inseparable 
from their state : nor is it to be wondered at that he thus 
raised the tone of the whole convent and kindled in the 
minds of the Religious a fervent desire to advance in the 
paths of perfection. And to show the results of his direction 
we have only to turn our thoughts for a moment to Sister 



His Love and Zeal for the Sick. 231 

Thaddeus Taxbock, to whom we have so often alluded. 
When she came first to the convent she was a poor and illi- 
terate peasant: but under F. Clement's guidance she became 
an example to the whole community. At the time of his 
beatification she was one of the most remarkable witnesses 
of his sanctity. Her memory was so extraordinary that after 
50 years she could repeat word for word both his sermons 
and his prayers : and her depositions were so clear that they 
would have done honour even to a profound theologian. 



CHAPTER XII. 
His love and zeal for the sick. 

AS his divine Master spent so much of His public life in 
consoling and healing the sick, so F. Clement always strove 
to imitate Him also in this matter : and considered it as im- 
portant a part of the apostolic life, as preaching and ad- 
ministering the Sacraments. 

In the monastery of which he had the direction he was 
most anxious that sickness should be looked upon as a pre- 
cious thing of which each should profit. He was never weary 
of visiting and consoling the sick Sisters and exhorting them 
to bear their sufferings with entire resignation to the will 
of God. In the infirmary there was one old nun, who, partly 
from illness and partly from the weakening of her intellec- 
tual faculties, was very impatient and capricious and a great 
burden to the community. F. Clement took to visiting her 
every day, and passing by the garden, would bring her some 
fresh flowers or fruit which consoled her for the whole even- 
ing. Then he would talk to her on various subjects and by 
degrees captivated her attention. But what touched her 
most of all was, that one day Father Clement proposed to 
her to take a little walk with him in the corridor, making 



232 His Love and Zeal for the Sick. 

her lean upon him all the while as she walked with diffi- 
culty. Such charity and tenderness from so eminent a man 
had such an effect on the poor old nun, that she changed 
from that hour and "became as patient and cheerful as she 
had formerly been the reverse. If at any time, she was in- 
clined to be discontented, it was only necessary to remind 
her of F. Clement and she would be quieted at once. 

When death drew near, Father Clement was always in- 
defatigable by the dying bed, praying, giving courage and 
helping the patient in every possible way. Sister Thaddeus 
relates that on one occasion, in the school attached to the 
convent, a child who had made her first Communion and 
who was called Rosina Goll, became dangerously ill. Feel- 
ing that death was near, the poor child was seized with ter- 
rible fear and lifting up her hands, cried out: "That black 
dog is trying to devour me !" Sister Thaddeus ran to fetch 
F. Clement, who came so quickly that they could not ima- 
gine how he had contrived to do so. The instant he came 
into the room the child cried out: "O! thank God, the dog 
is gone." F. Clement blessed and tranquillised her, gave 
her a general absolution and remained with her till she ex- 
pired with a bright, happy face. Then F. Clement said: 
"We have now another Angel in Paradise praying for us." 
The Sisters felt convinced that the cause of the fear of this 
good child was the visible presence of the demon who had 
been forced to leave her in peace when F. Clement appeared. 
The same devoted care of the dying was shown by him in 
all cases. Often he would sit up to take Holy Communion 
to them after midnight when they were unable to fast until 
morning and this not only to the Community under his care, 
but to the rich and poor, to the hospitals, and in fact, wher- 
ever he was summoned to attend a person in danger of 
death. And this charity of his was so well-known, that on 
every side he received intreaties to visit the sick especially 
when they had lost their faith : nor did he ever refuse to go 



His Love and Zeal for the SicJc. 233 

to the most distant suburbs of the town. He would take a 
little lantern with him to light him in the dark courts and 
alleys he had to traverse and if the people were poor, he 
would take with him food and wine and other necessaries 
for the sick. With his extraordinary sweetness and affability 
he won their confidence at once and often rescued the most 
obstinate sinners from the brink of the precipice. Before 
starting he would get all the prayers he could and all the 
way along he would say his Rosary. Great was his joy when 
he could tell the Sisters on his return that "thanks to their 
prayers" a soul had been saved, or a man had been to con- 
fession who had neglected doing so for years and that he 
had died with sentiments of sincere contrition. 

One day he was asked to go see a man who for 22 years 
had entirely neglected his duties and who would not hear 
of seeing a priest. When F. Clement came into his room, 
he burst out into imprecations and ordered him to go away 
instantly. But F. Clement only answered gently : "Whoever 
undertakes a long journey provides himself with all that is 
necessary lest he should faint by the way. And you who are 
going away, would you refuse that which is so vital to your 
safety — i. e. the Sacraments of the Church? For the love of 
God be prudent in this matter/' 

But as his words seemed useless, F. Clement made believe 
to go, but lingered at the door, looking lovingly on the sick 
man, who exclaimed: "What on earth do you want? For 
heaven's sake, go away and leave me in peace!" "No," re- 
plied Father Clement, "I shall not go, for your end is very 
near and I want to see how a man who is damned is going 
to die!" These words so startled the dying man that he im- 
plored him to come back and .to forgive his abusive lan- 
guage. "I willingly forgive you," replied the Father. "But God, 
whom I have offended so grievously, will never forgive me !" 
exclaimed the unhappy man bursting into a torrent of tears. 
Upon which F. Clement reassured him, saying: "God is 



234 His Love and Zeal for the Sick. 

infinitely good and merciful. Only make an act of hearty 
contrition for your past offences, and all will be remitted by 
Him." 

The dying man hastened to make the fullest confession 
of his sins with the utmost sorrow and penitence and cling- 
ing tightly to the Father's hand who was holding the Cru- 
cifix, he died a few minutes after in peace and hope, to the 
inexpressible thankfulness of his wife and mother who had 
begun to despair of his salvation. The same thing often 
happened in Warsaw. Once, especially, a soldier who an- 
nounced himself as a "hater of priests" saw F. Clement 
coming near his bed when he exclaimed: "Come along, you 
villain! and I will tear out your eyes." But F. Clement, with- 
out heeding his words, walked up quietly to his bedside and 
there talked to him with such sweetness and charity that 
the wolf was turned into a lamb and that he was reconciled 
to God and the Church and made an edifying death. 

Canon Veith relates another instance : 

"An old gentleman in Vienna was very ill, but would not 
hear of receiving the Sacraments. If any priest came near 
him, he would cry out: "Go to the devil!" At least a dozen 
priests of different communities had tried to get hold of 
him, but in vain. At last they had recourse to F. Clement, 
who set off at once, saying the Rosary all the way. He was 
ushered into a beautiful room where the wife and children 
of the dying man were sobbing near the door of another 
apartment where the sick person lay. Simply saying : "You 
will see, it will soon be all right," F. Clement went straight 
in and going up to the bed, entered upon the subject un- 
mediately : and to the amazement of every one, the dying 
man received him gladly, listened to his exhortations with 
the greatest docility and then and there made his confession." 

On another occasion he was sent for by the friends of a 
young nobleman, who by reading rationalistic books, had 
lost all faith and who was suddenly seized with a mortal ill- 



His Love and Zeal for the Sick. 235 

ness. Father Clement went directly to his bedside and with- 
out losing time in vain preambles, told him to say the Creed. 
The young man showed some repugnance at beginning; so 
F. Clement simply threw some Holy water over him and 
said: "Now, my child, go on!" And then repeated it with 
him ; after which the youth exclaimed : "Now I should like 
to make my confession." He afterwards received all the 
Sacraments of the Church and expired full of contrition and 
confidence in God's mercy. 

Sometimes a single word was enough to induce the sick 
to receive the Sacraments. Upon this point Father Krai 
wrote. "There was a certain Baron Moser, who had been 
for a long time ill of consumption, but could not be induced 
to go to his duties because he could not believe there was 
any danger in his state, as so many people feel with that 
flattering disease. His wife called upon F. Clement and im- 
plored him to come and persuade her husband to receive 
the Sacraments. He consented at once and coming into the 
room said: "Baron, I want you to go to confession for then 
you will be sure of going to Heaven. 

The Baron was so surprised and startled at this speech 
that he could only answer: "Do you really believe this, 
Father?" "Certainly I do", wasF. Clement's reply. And the 
Baron at once made a general confession and was full of 
joy because F. Clement had assured him of salvation. As 
his illness dragged on for a long time, he would now and 
then play at cards with his friends, which used to annoy his 
pious wife, who wanted her husband to give up such amuse- 
ments. But the Baron answered : "F. Clement never forbid 
my playing and that is enough for me: for if he had thought 
it wrong he would certainly not have given me permission 
to do so." Finally, full of resignation to the Divine will, he 
slept in peace, full of hope of enjoying celestial joys. 

With the same firm confidence in the mercy of God, O ! 
how many persons did he console at the terrible hour of 



236 His Love and Zeal for the Sick. 

death! The young Countess Lichtenberg who was dying of 
consumption, sent for F. Clement to prepare her for the 
great journey to Eternity. When he had left her, she ex- 
claimed, full of joy and confidence: "Certainly I shall go to 
Heaven. F. Clement has promised it to me !" 

It was indeed very rarely that F. Clement assisted at a 
deathbed without the most consoling results.* But once he 
was summoned to the great oculist Barth, who was both 
an atheist and a freemason and who was dying. When F. 
Clement came in, Barth exclaimed: "O! here comes one 
with the head of an Apostle !" "And to see one with the 
head of Socrates," replied F. Clement trying to fall into his , 
humour. Buth though Barth was very much pleased at his 
visit, it produced little or no fruit : which was not surprising, 
when we remember that many were not converted who heard 
the words and witnessed the miracles of our Lord Himself 
and that Barth was a freemason of the worst sort. The oaths 
which that sect take to the devil, the excommunication of 
the Church which weighs on their heads, and their terrible 
habits, make their conversion when it does take place, very 
like a miracle, for every impediment is put in the way of 
Divine grace. Nevertheless in other cases, F. Clement was 



* We have "before mentioned his assisting at the death of Countess Zichy. 
But we have before us part of a letter written by him on the 23rd of Novbr. 
to Herr von Schlosser of Frankfort, in which he begs him and his wife to con- 
sole Frau von Schlegel for the loss of Countess Zichy, and which we here 
transcribe : "We shall be sure to see her again and that for all eternity where 
there is no separation • for in the house of our celestial Father, our good 
Lord has kept a place likewise for each of us. Beloved friends I If we in this 
land of exile have so much cause to weep, let us turn our eyes towards our 
true home where all tears shall be dried and where our good God Himself 
will be our great and exceeding reward. These few moments called Life are 
given us to sow in : and, like our brothers who have already arrived at their 
celestial home, we must sow in tears, to be able to gather abundant fruit for 
all eternity: and thus we also shall rejoice with them for ever. God the Fa- 
ther bless you, as I beg of him for Jesus' sake; and may the Holy Spirit who 
dwells in your hearts, inspire you to fight valiantly for God and His truth 
even unto the end." 



His paternal Sollicitude for the Poor. 237 

more successful, not only in Warsaw but in Vienna: and 
one remarkable instance is recorded of a man in the Impe- 
rial household, a member of a secret society, who going by 
accident into the Ursuline Church heard a sermon of Father 
Clement's which so greatly touched him that he hastened 
to make his General Confession and soon after died, assisted 
by F. Clement, in peace with God and man. 



CHAPTER XIII. 
His paternal sollicitude foe. the poor. 

AS a good Father of a family cares for his children so 
was F. Clement watchful over the needs of the poor. And 
as he had literally nothing of his own and often deprived 
himself of necessaries for the sake of others, he could only 
make himself a beggar for their wants and by degrees en- 
listed a certain number of rich benefactors who were able 
and willing to assist him. The Superior of the Salesians sent 
him every Friday two great loaves for his poor : and two of 
the Vienna Bakers supplied him regularly and often emp- 
tied their purses into his lap when he came to plead for 
very urgent cases. When he went to hear confessions in a 
church in a poor quarter, he would hide under his cloak a 
quantity of food to give to the most needy of his penitents, 
whom he would go and visit afterwards in their own homes. 
But his special sympathy was enlished for those who had 
known better days, "pauvres /wnteux", as the French call them ; 
whom he contrived to assist in all sorts of ingenious ways, 
so as not to hurt their feelings. For instance, there was a 
certain painter, whose works were not of much merit, but 
whom he constantly employed; so as to give him bread 
without the necessity of begging. In that way he covered 
his alms with the mantle of mercy and saved the honour of 
the poor artist. He showed the same delicate charity in a 



238 His paternal Sollicitude for the Poor. 

thousand other instances. He maintained two poor students in 
his own house, one named Srna, who afterwards joined the 
Congregation , and another who gave himself to the profes- 
sion of surgery. Many other poor students whom he could 
not lodge, depended upon him for their daily food. In fact, 
no poor person ever knocked at his door in vain. 

Even at the doors of the Ursuline monastery invalid sol- 
diers used to flock, among whom F. Clement would divide 
all he had. Very often he would not eat his own dinner to 
have more to give to his dear poor. And as very often, he 
was out in the morning visiting the sick or hearing confes- 
sions, he would put bread and other things in the sacristy 
of the' church so as to be able to distribute them on his re- 
turn. Especially in the great famine year of 1817, he re- 
doubled his efforts, so that many hundreds were saved by 
him from sheer starvation. Canon Greif said truly of him : 
"Whatever he had, he gave away: and this was his life." 
And Dr. Veith added : "He employed himself in the service 
of the poor as a mother does with her children." "So much 
did he love them," wrote F. Madlener, "that he preferred 
them infinitely to the rich : and while he was always seek- 
ing out the poor and needy the great people complained 
that he never would come to them, but that they had to seek 
him out. If he went to pay visits to people of high rank, it 
was invariably to gain their souls. This was the one object 
and end of his life." He was also continually on the look-out 
to help those who were not exactly poor, but who were in 
want of money for certain reasons at certain particular 
times. Thus he obtained (probably from the Archduke Ma- 
ximilian) a hundred sequins for Adam Muller, who was 
founding an Educational Institute : and once finding Clement 
Brentano in great straits, he gave him a like sum, as Herr von 
Stramberg declared he had heard from Brentano's own lips.* 

* In the Ecclesiastical Dictionary of Friburg it is mentioned that Brentano 
found himself one day sadly depressed because a play of his had not sue- 



His paternal Sollicitude for the Poor. 239 

As F. Clement had such a love for Religious, he was al- 
ways striving to help those who had a vocation to enable 
them to embrace that state. A Salesian nun, Mary Ott, 
mentions having received this charity at his hands and 
added : "If I am a religious now, I owe it entirely to him." 
The Ursuline monastery was alone a luminous example of 
his charity. During the seven years he was their director, 
he never would receive anything from them save his poor 
dwelling and the simple food they sent him. And when, 
from the reduction of the public debt and other causes, the 
capital and interest of the convent were greatly diminished, 
he never rested till he had obtained assistance for them from 
without. Sister Welschenau relates, that: "One day we were 
reduced to such straits that the procurator did not know 
Avhat to do. There was no wood, no food, no medicines even 
for the sick and in despair she began to cry. One of the Sis- 
ters exclaimed : "Ah ! now is the time that we want the fish 
of St. Peter 1" But what was our consolation when that very 
same day F. Clement arrived and smiling playfully said: "I 
am the fish ! " while he gave us a large sum of money which 
not only provided for all our wants but also paid a large 
portion of our debts. It happened ever after that our finances 
prospered, and we never again were in such difficulties. 

One day he brought us a lamb under his cloak and another 
day a heavy packet of wax candles: and he was always beg- 
ging for us from rich people so that we might not be in 
want. In the same way he thought of the needs of each one 
of us, whether spiritual or temporal. I can say so from my 

ceeded on the stage. F. Clement went to see him and with extreme tender- 
ness condoled with the young poet ; but talked to him of the abuse he was 
making of his talents , of the uselessness of the life he was leading and of 
the rigorous account he would have to give to his eternal judge. Thus he 
saved him both body and soul. Probably he had a presentiment of the 
wonderful position reserved for him by Providence with Catherine Emmerich. 
Brentano was well known to him and held in great affection by the Redemp- 
torist Congregation. 



240 His paternal Sollicitude for the Poor. 

own experience, for he took as much trouble about me as 
if I had been the only one in the monastery and to him 
alone, after God, I am indebted for leave to make my last 
vows, as the community objected to me on account of my 
delicate health." 

One day the Archduke Rudolph, Cardinal Archbishop of 
Olmiitz, came to visit the monastery and on leaving it turned 
to F.Clement and said: "Really, Father, the joy of the Holy 
Spirit seems to rest upon you and upon the countenances of 
all the Sisters in this holy house." F. Clement answered 
bowing: "And yet, your Eminence, we are weighed down 
and well nigh crushed by the burden of our poverty and 
debts ; and unless some aid be speedily obtained, we must 
dissolve the community." The Cardinal instantly promised 
to speak to his brother, the Emperor : and the result was, 
that, in a few days, two gentlemen arrived on behalf of His 
Majesty, bearing enough money to pay all the debts: so 
that the Convent was saved and the future position of the 
nuns was secured. 

During this previous time of anxiety and distress, Sister 
Thaddeus was clothed: but the Superior said to her: "I can- 
not alas ! give you shoes like the rest of the community : but 
you must wear those you had when you came in here, for I 
have no money to buy anything." But after meditation was 
over, F. Clement came in and calling the Sister said : "Here 
is a pair of shoes such as are worn by the other Sisters. Try 
them on and if they do not fit, I will change them." The 
sister adds : "They fitted me beautifully and I used them for 
34 years: for, from the great veneration I felt towards F. 
Clement, I only wore them on great feasts." 

In the same way some foreign Fathers were deeply in- 
debted to his charity, as, when they arrived, they knew 
neither the language, nor the city, nor the money of the 
country : which, when F. Clement found out, he went and 
lived with them for three weeks, put them in the way of 



His Efforts for the Christian Education of Youth. 241 

every thing and was throughout their best friend and 
counsellor. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

His Efforts fob the Christian Education of Youth. 

ANOTHER object which F. Clement had much at heart 
was the careful training and education of children. It was the 
frequent subject of his sermons when he would say: "You, 
Parents ! never forget that upon you depends the blessing or 
curse which falls on the human race : for to you is confided the 
education of man. If you watch over your children and learn 
to break, in time, their perverse wills, so that they may be- 
come obedient and docile, you will make them good and 
useful in their generation. That which is sown in the heart 
of a little child will remain there till it is old : and if you do 
what in you lies, God Himself will do the rest." Of what F. 
Clement did in Warsaw for education we have already 
spoken : and he showed the same anxiety and the same zeal 
in Vienna. On very many occasions he instructed children 
himself in the rudiments of the faith and prepared them to 
receive with fervour their first communion. He had a pe- 
culiar gift of winning children and when they came to him, 
would give them pictures, medals and sweets, of which Car- 
dinal Schwarzenberg himself retained a grateful recollection ; 
having, when he was nine years old, frequently seen F. Cle- 
ment, who was visiting his sick Tutor, Dr. Greif. Sister 
Thaddeus relates that when whenF. Clement was walking in 
the streets of the city, children used to come up and kiss 
his hand and then follow him to whatever house he was 
going, he entertaining them the while with loving words or 
little stories. Often they would follow him home, when he 
had always some little thing to give them, with which they 
went away rejoicing. One day he said to the son of one of 

16 



242 His Efforts for the Christian Education of Youth. 

the Aulic Counsellors of Vienna: "My dear little Charles, 
listen to me. You are now old enough to ohey the precepts 
of the Church and you know it is not allowed to us to eat 
meat on Fridays. We must offer up this little sacrifice to 
our Lord Jesus Christ, who on that day offered Himself up 
on the cross for the love of us." The next Friday, Charles 
seeing meat as usual on the table and no fish, said bravely : 
"Papa! To-day I cannot eat meat." "And why not, pray?" 
answered his father angrily. "Because it is Friday, Papa, 
when the Church tells us to abstain because our Lord died 
on the cross on that day." "Who told you that?" replied his 
father with visible impatience. "F. Clement", replied the 
child. Then the father in a severe tone ordered him to eat 
the meat: but the boy intreated him not to force him to do 
so. His prayer was of no avail and his •father, furious at 
what he called his obstinacy, drove him from the table say- 
ing : "Take him out of my sight I he shall have nothing else 
to-day." Charles ran to his mother, who consoled him and 
said: "I will get something maigre for you." "No, Mama", 
replied the boy, "because Papa said I was not to have any- 
thing else and F. Clement said I must always obey him un- 
less he tells me to do something contrary to the laws of God 
and the Church. I can do very well without anything to eat 
to-day!" His mother very much touched at the boy's answer, 
went to her husband and told him: who, ashamed of his 
own conduct and admiring his son's obedience, Avhich was 
in reality a reproof to himself, told him "to eat anything his 
mother had prepared and that in future he would never ask 
him to eat meat on Fridays." 

Ever after the laws of the Church were obeyed by the 
Counsellor and his household, and the father conceived 
such an esteem for F. Clement that he often took his boy 
to the Ursuline Church that he might serve the Father's 
mass : so that the wise counsel given to the child influenced 
the whole family. 



His Efforts for the Christian Education of Youth. 243 

Very salutary also was the influence exercised by F. Cle- 
ment over the young girls who attended the Ursuline Convent 
or who were received as boarders there. We will here tran- 
scribe part of a letter from one of these girls, who afterwards 
became the wife of General Baron Pongracz and was a most 
admirable woman: 20 th of Jan. 187 7. "My father, who was 
Captain in a cavalry regiment, placed me in the Ursuline 
Convent in 1810, where I remained for six years. Here I 
had the good fortune to be placed under the guidance of F. 
Clement Hofbauer, whose religious instructions became the 
rule of my life and have been my support in my old age. 
My mistress. Sister Louisa, was like a mother to me and 
when F. Clement came into the house she used to bring me 
to him to receive his blessing. Even to this day I remember 
the sorrowful hour. when in 1816, my father sent for me to 
come home and I had to leave the convent where I had been 
so happy. I knelt at Father Clement's feet crying my heart 
out: but he, lovingly placing his hand on my head and 
blessing me, said : "My child, never forget the instructions 
you have received in this holy house ; and then you will 
succeed in life and live to a good old age." These words 
seemed to me like a prophecy and they certainly have been 
fulfilled : for in spite of some little troubles, I have passed 
many very happy years ; and now in my old age, I remember 
still with deep gratitude the venerable priest who was my 
first spiritual guide." 

On another occasion F. Clement found a boy neglected 
by his parents and ignorant of the things most necessary to 
his salvation. He took the child home and to a school in 
the Parish of St. Ann, begging the master to give him some 
instruction. At that moment the Angelus rang, it being mid- 
day, and the master said laughingly: "There's the bell for 
dinner!" These words displeased F. Clement, who replied 
quietly: "What do you mean? You, who are a schoolmaster 
and have to teach children their religion, you do not know 



244 His Efforts for the Christian Education of Youth. 

the meaning of that bell?" And then and there explained 
to him how the Church thus kept up the memory of the In- 
carnation. The schoolmaster was so impressed by his words 
that not very long after, he gave up his place and went into 
a monastery. 

The greatest sorrow of F. Clement's life was the way in 
which infidel teachers endeavoured to instil their anti- 
Christian maxims into the hearts of the young. In Vienna 
there was literally no purely Catholic College for boys : and 
F. Clement never rested till he had persuaded the Aulic 
Counsellor, AdamMuLler, to start one for the higher classes, 
promising the aid of his Fathers as Professors. Miiller's Col- 
lege was accordingly opened and succeeded admirably, F. 
Clement visiting it himself continually. But unhappily, the 
Government refused to give it any official recognition and 
the institution had to be given up. 

Not discouraged, however, F. Clement went to another 
friend of his, Frederick von Klinkowstrom, and passing with 
him by a certain house suddenly stopped arid said: "Look 
at this house : it would be very well suited for a school. Do 
buy it!" "That's all very well", replied Frederick laughing. 
"But where is the money to come from? You know I have 
got none." F. Clement replied : "Never mind : buy it all the 
same. I will get the money." Full of confidence in F. Cle- 
ment's words Frederick did as he was bid and a Protestant, 
Baron Geusau, lent the money on very favourable condi- 
tions and sent his three sons to be educated there, their 
mother being a Catholic. The great thing now was to obtain 
the Government sanction, which was all the more difficult 
from the said permission having been refused to Adam 
Miiller's Institution. At F. Clement's intreaty, however, the 
Archduke Maximilian d'Este undertook it: and to obtain 
divine assistance in the matter, he resolved to impose upon 
himself a special mortification for the rest of his life, and 
that was, never again to drink sugar in his coffee. The Im- 



F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 245 

perial approbation was obtained in 1818, and the Archduke 
kept religiously to his promise, though he only revealed the 
reason of his abstention to his confessor a short time before 
his death. 

The institution thus started by F. Clement was singularly 
blessed by God : and as it met a want which was very gene- 
rally felt, it obtained support from all quarters; and not 
only in Vienna but from Naples, Constantinople, Bucharest, 
Russia, France, Bavaria and many other countries, pupils 
flocked to this college which under Klinkowstrom's able 
guidance, became an unmixed success. Its students after- 
wards became remarkable as statesmen, as officers in the 
army, as ecclesiastics and in the diplomatic service : among 
whom we may mention Count Crivelli, Baron Hubner (both 
Ambassadors to the Holy See); the Envoy and afterwards 
minister, Baron Brenner; Baron Stillfried, so well known 
for his defence of the Catholic faith, and many others. And 
all preserved to the last those patriotic and Christian prin- 
ciples with which they had been imbued in this truly Ca- 
tholic Institution. 



CHAPTER XV. 
Father Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 

FIRMLY convinced that outside the pale of the Catholic 
Church there is no salvation and filled with love and charity 
to his neighbour, it may easily be imagined that F. Clement 
had greatly at heart the conversion of heretics. "Who will 
grant me the grace to rescue all these poor infidel souls!" 
he would exclaim. "O ! if I could, how gladly would I bear 
them in my arms into the bosom of the Catholic Church!" 
And another time, in the pulpit, he burst out with the fol- 
lowing prayer: "Jesus! my Lord! turn Thy gracious eyes 
towards us from the throne of Thy mercy. Thou, for our 



246 F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 

salvation, hast shed all Thy precious Blood on the accursed 
tree to redeem us and obtain for us eternal life. Thy Father 
in Heaven is ours also, for Thou art our Brother in the flesh. 
Wilt Thou allow so many beings whom Thou hast created 
to perish eternally? Lord! If thon wilt, Thou canst save 
them. Look upon the tears of the Church, Thy spouse. 
Draw towards her her children who are afar oif, so that they 
too may be gathered into her fold. DiiFuse over the erring 
the light of faith, which alone can save us and make us 
Saints. And if the groans of my love do not deserve to be 
heard by Thee, for I am but a miserable sinner, I turn to 
Thee, O ! powerful Virgin, mother of mercy, and implore Thee 
to pray for us. Then all heretics will be converted and all 
will praise and glorify Thy Holy Name for ever and for 
ever and for ever!" 

But there was no doubt that the zeal and love of this holy 
man were largely rewarded by God. In Warsaw as in Vienna 
the conversions that he made were extraordinary. Sister 
Thaddeus states, "that it was very rarely that a week passed 
without some Protestants making their abjuration and some 
Jews being baptised," but we will mention a few eminent 
cases. 

Dorothea, daughter of the Philosopher, Moses Mendels- 
sohn, married first Simon Veit, a banker in Berlin, by whom 
she had two children. But in the year 1802, she was sepa- 
rated from him and married the Philosopher, Frederick von 
Schlegel, when, to the astonishment of every one she became 
a Christian (having been a Jewess) and was baptised in the 
Swedish Protestant] Church at Paris. Schlegel in 1808 
published a wonderful book on the language and literature 
of the Indians : but what astonished the world far more was, 
that on the 1 6 th of April of that year he and his wife became 
Catholics and proceeded to Vienna, where Prince Metternich 
made him Secretary to the Chancellor of State. In this ca- 
pacity, he accompanied the Archduke Charles to the battle- 



F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 247 

field and wrote the Austrian proclamations against Napoleon. 
When peace was declared, he devoted himself to literature 
in which he made a great and deserved reputation. From 
IS 15 to 1818 he was Counsellor of Legation at Frankfort, 
after which he went for a time with his family to Rome, 
and then returned to Vienna. Here F. Clement became his 
intimate friend and the Director and guide of the whole 
family. The two sons of Mme. von Schlegel by her first 
marriage, John and Philip Veit, following the example 
of their mother, were baptised and instructed by F. Cle- 
ment. Philip, who died in 1878, Director of the Pinacotheke 
at Mayence and who was himself a great painter, writes of 
his conversion as follows: "Although I had received some 
instruction in the Catholic Religion in Cologne , it was F. 
Clement, that holy and great servant of God, whom I can 
never forget, who really prepared myself and my brother 
for the reception of Baptism. It is impossible for me to de- 
scribe the untiring zeal and tender love he showed us on 
this occasion and I would to God we had profited by it and 
been as grateful as his wonderful charity deserved! It was 
only later and by degrees, that we realised how greatly we 
were his debtors and how often I must have disgusted him 
and tried his patience by my carelessness and indifference. 
We were baptised on the 9 tlx of June 1810, being the Eve of 
Pentecost, in the Chapel of the Nunzio, by the hands of 
Cardinal Severoli assisted by Father Clement and in the 
presence of the Marchioness Rangoni, Baron Penkler and 
many others. He took us also on a little Pilgrimage to 
Maria Zell, an expedition which made a very deep impres- 
sion upon me and when I had the pleasure of serving his 
mass in that holy Chapel Father Clement was an in- 
timate friend of Frederick von Schlegel' s: he was constantly 
with us and exercised the best possible influence both over 
him and over our holy and good mother, who had the great- 
est esteem and veneration for him. I recollect once going 



248 F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 

into the Sacristy with him, where we found F. Werner in 
an agony about a sermon he was about to preach and which 
he was afraid of forgetting. F. Clement encouraged him: 
but F. Werner replied : "It's all very well for you, who, with- 
out any preparation , have such a flow of beautiful words 
and thoughts ! ! but a poor fellow like me ....!" 

At this time and especially during the Congress of Vienna, 
our house was frequented by persons of the highest rank 
both Protestant and Catholic. Every one who met F. Cle- 
ment was delighted and struck with him ; and all showed 
the greatest respect for his opinion , though , as a fervent 
priest, he often threw out little words, such as : "Well when 
are you going to Rome?" or the like. In all these occasions, 
however, he never forgot his dignity and reserve as a priest 
and his noble bearing made a great impression on all." 

Schlegel himself was as devoted and obedient to him as 
his step-sons. He used to bring him his writings so as to 
have his approbation before publishing them. One day when 
he had read to him a very brilliant article, F. Clement em- 
braced him and exclaimed: "Well done! my dear Frederick! 
but remember only that it is better still to love Our Lord 
Jesus Christ with all your heart." 

When Schlegel and his wife went to Frankfort and after- 
wards to Rome, they kept up a constant correspondance 
with F. Clement and one of these letters from Dorothea 
written on the 2 8 th of June 1817 from Frankfort will show 
our readers how great was the influence he exercised over 
her sons. 

"Very Revd. and dear Father!" she writes. "To-day being 
the vigil of the great Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul, I can- 
not do less than talk to you a little, for no great Feast passes 
without my longing to find myself kneeling at your feet and 
listening to your wise counsels. You have written about my 
dear Philip according to our fondest wishes and hopes. I 
bless him for yielding himself with such docility into your 



F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 249 

hands : for no one knows so well how to lead him to God 
and to teach him to submit in all things to the Divine will. 
We pray to our Lord with all our hearts that you may con- 
tinue to guide and direct him, so that you, who know so 
well all his little faults and weaknesses, may strengthen him 
with your holy counsels and advice, even unto the end .... 
Finally, beloved and revered Father, help us all with your 
holy prayers in which we have such confidence, that we may 
receive the light of the Holy Spirit of God and walk circum- 
spectly in the midst of the snares and pitfalls of this weary 
world." 

John Veit, the eldest son, established himself in Rome, 
where he painted nothing but Madonnas. He died in 1854, 
and his wife, who was also a convert from Protestantism 
and very holy, died eight years later, leaving all her money 
to good works. 

But we must and speak now of another family whom F. 
Clement converted and who became his intimate friends. 
Frederick von Klinkowstrom, son of a Swedish Lieutenant 
Colonel, was born inPomerania on the 31 st of Aug. 1778. He 
served first in the army and then gave it up to devote him- 
self to painting. In 1810, being at Paris, he made acquaint- 
ance with Antony von Pilat, Counsellor of the Austrian 
Government, and soon after, becoming intimate with the 
family, married his cousin, Louisa von Mengershausen of 
Hanover. 

Before going to Vienna, Frederick had experienced in a 
most extraordinary manner, the salutary influence of the 
man who was destined by God to be the main instrument 
of his salvation. He was one day in Hamburgh, when, after 
spending a night with some young men of loose morals, a 
woman of bad character was introduced into the room. But 
as she came in, Frederick, who was leaning against the win- 
dow, suddenly saw a venerable priest dressed in a cope, who 
was walking behind her and who cast a look of such indig- 



250 F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 

nation at Frederick , that he, startled and ashamed , made 
an excuse to leave the room at once and ran home, making 
a note at the time of the event and the appearance of the 
priest. 

Many years after, being at Vienna and having made friends 
with Schlegel, the latter took him one day to the Italian 
Church, where F. Clement gave the Benediction of the 
Blessed Sacrament. He fixed his eyes on the priest a.nd to 
his amazement recognised the very man who in Hamburgh 
had kept him from sin. There was no doubt about it. It 
was the same face, the same dress, the same in everything 
which he had seen in that mysterious vision and never before 
or since! 

It may easily be understood that after this, Frederick 
could not resist asking to be introduced to F. Clement and 
going to see him: and very soon he won his entire con- 
fidence and persuaded him to recognise that the Catholic 
Church was the only ark of salvation. If he abstained then 
and there from making his abjuration, it was only for love 
of his wife, who was a strong Protestant and whom he did 
not wish to pain. But she began to suspect his intentions, 
seeing that he no longer went to the Protestant Church but 
to that of the Servites, although he tried to deceive her by 
saying "that he went there because he preferred the music." 

The war, however, absorbed every one's thoughts at that 
time and very soon Klinkowstrom had to join the Austrian 
Head-Quarters : while von Pilat was summoned to Paris : 
so that their two wives, Louisa and Elisabeth were left alone 
at home to console one another. 

F. Clement frequently visited them: and one day, on Holy 
Thursday, he found both Ladies very sad and silent, though 
they had both on that day according to the custom of the 
Protestant Church, gone to the Lord's supper. F. Clement 
asked them "what was the matter?" and they confessed to 
the unsatisfactoriness of the service at which they had just 



F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 251 

assisted and their Wish to study the doctrines of the Catholic 
Church "to which we should have come long ago" one of 
them said "if it had not been for confession!" "O! as to that," 
replied F. Clement, "leave it to me." 

F. Clement' then began with great prudence to ask them, 
one by one, certain questions as to their past lives and so 
won their confidence that they gladly opened their whole 
hearts to him: so that after a time F. Clement said cheer- 
fully : "Well this formidable thing is nearly over. You have 
both made your confession to me and very little remains to 
do !" and then teaching them how to make an act of contrition 
and a resolution to amend their lives, he gave them abso- 
lution and after a little more instruction received them both 
into the Church in the presence of Schlegel and his wife. 

When Klinkowstrom heard this, he was greatly rejoiced; 
and returning to Vienna, was himself admitted on the 13 th 
of September and made his profession of faith to F. Clement. 

There remained only the 3 rd sister, Augusta von Menger- 
hausen: but the great patience and charity of F. Clement 
triumphed over all opposition and she not only became a 
Catholic but a Salesian in the monastery of Gleink, where 
she gave the highest edification and died a saintly death. 
When Anthony von Pilat came home in 1814, he found 
indeed a change in his household. Both his wife and sister- 
in-law were become fervent Catholics , as well as Klinkow- 
strom: and a like grace soon touched his own heart; to that 
within a few weeks he too made his general confession to 
Father Clement and embraced the Catholic Faith. As 
long as Father Clement lived, he continued the intimate 
friend and guide of both families: and von Pilat' s con- 
version was the more remarkable and important, because he 
had been a Free-mason and was Secretary to Prince Metter- 
nich, in which capacity he could have done much harm:* 

* Father Krai, Ms confessor, relates the following anecdote in proof of 
his honour and probity. To go to his office, Pilat had to pass before the 



252 F. Clement converts many Jeivs and Protestants. 

whereas, as a fervent Catholic and a weekly Communicant, 
his whole influence was for good and he continued till the 
end of his life of 82 years in active service both for God 
and his country. He was much esteemed at the Congress of 
Vienna and decorated by all the Sovereign Heads. In 
another and a humbler way, that is, as Editor of " The Austrian 
Observer " he was also able to do good service to the Church : 
while his honourable integrity won the esteem and respect 
of all classes of persons* 

Another remarkable conversion of F. Clement's was that 
of Frederick Schlosser, of whom Rosenthal speaks: "That in 
all Germany there was not a more pure and noble soul. 
Adorned with every gift of heart and mind, a wonderful 
linguist and poet, always at hand to assist the poor and 
suffering, he was looked upon by all his fellow citizens as an 
example of a true patriot and a fervent Christian and as 
such deserving a monument in the hearts of all." 

He was born of a noble family in Frankfort in 1780 and 
in 1815 was sent on important affairs to the Congress of 
Vienna, where he became acquainted with F. Clement and 
was by him received into the Church. His wife, Sophia du 
Fay, writes of this event on the 20 th of June 1864 as follows: 
"It is impossible to say the impression made by this holy 
man upon my husband , for truly the key-note of his cha- 
racter was love of God and of His Church and a burning 
desire to lead all Souls to the feet of our Lord. This appeared 
in his whole person, in his words, in his works, in his 

Exchange : and one day a speculator came up to him and offered him a 
large sum of money if he would only say a word to him in his ear the 
next morning, even if it were only "good morning 1" Pilat saw directly 
how the man would make capital out of this imaginary conversation with 
Prince Metternich's confidential Secretary and indignantly rejected the 
temptation. 

* Klinkowstrom died on the 4th f April 1835 and his wife Louisa, 
(of whose faith F. Clement spoke as "founded on a rock") on the 7th of 
March 1821 in the prime of life, amidst the tears and lamentations of 
the poor to whom she had ever heen as a tender mother. 



F. Clement converts many Jews and Protestants. 253 

preaching, everything about him, in fact, though perfectly 
simple, produced a most extraordinary impression. When 
he spoke of the magnificence of the Catholic Church and 
said these words : 'Only those who have the good fortune to 
be within her fold and among her members, can know what 
she is', every one was filled with an ardent wish to become 
a child of this Church ; so much so , that I insisted upon 
being received even when I knew very little about it. F. 
Clement received us both on the 17 th of Dec. 1815, and 
never ceased to be a real Father to us. I have never passed 
happier hours in my life than those we used to spend with 
him, when, after mass, he would ask us to breakfast and 
show himself the tenderest, brightest and most paternal of 
friends." 

"I have been asked," she continues, "for this cause of his 
beatification, to give my opinion of his holiness. But how 
can I do so? or judge a man, who, to my thinking, never 
had an equal in this world? whoever knew him must have 
felt that in his soul, not only was there no guile, nor even 
an imperfection, but that he was entirely filled with the 
love and with the spirit of God, and with a burning charity 
towards all men, so that those were indeed fortunate who 
could claim an intimacy with such a Saint!" 

Schlosser died on the 7 th of Jan. 1851 at Frankfort at 70 
years of age and his wife, in the Castle of Neuburg in 1865. 

We will only speak of one more remarkable conversion 
of F. Clement's and that was of the two sons of a certain 
Baron Bieger. He was a Calvinist and brought up his sons 
in that Faith, but soon after died. The youngest son, 
Adolphus, was taken dangerously ill in Vienna and his 
Tutor, John Madlener, who was a devoted follower of F. 
Clement's, ran to tell him of his danger and to ask his ad- 
vice. F. Clement replied : "Tell the sick youth that he will 
die ; if not, you will have to render an account of his soul." 
Madlener went back to his charge, but had not the courage 



254 Meetings and Evening Conferences 

to tell the whole truth and only said : " that a friend of his, 
F. Clement, wished to come and see him." "Thank him from 
me," replied Adolphus: "and tell him, when I am cured, I 
will go and see him." "But, you are dangerously ill!" re- 
joined Madlener. "Never mind, go away now and pray for 
me," replied the sick youth. Madlener hurried hack to F. 
Clement, imploring him to come himself. F. Clement at 
once assented and started off, saying the Rosary all the way. 
When he came to the young Baron, he spoke to him very 
tenderly and asked him "how he felt?" "Very ill," he re- 
plied, and his manner so pleased the Father that he asked 
those around the bed to retire and leave him alone with the 
sick man. After a little time, he came out and saying quietly 
to the astonished nurses: "The young Baron is now a Ca- 
tholic. I am going to get the Holy Viaticum. And you, 
Madlener, go to him and assist him to prepare to receive 
our Lord worthily," he went out and presently returned 
with that supreme consolation of the dying. Adolphus re- 
ceived It with indescribable faith and joy and resigning him- 
self entirely to the Will of God , expired soon after in per- 
fect peace. 

A few days later, his brother Charles arrived unexpectedly 
in Vienna, after a long journey, and hearing what had oc- 
curred went to thank F. Clement for his kindness and cha- 
rity towards his brother. F. Clement entered into conver- 
sation with him, and the result was, that after a long talk, 
he too decided to become a Catholic. Later on, he chose the 
ecclesiastical state, and died at Vienna as an excellent priest 
in 1863. 

Out of gratitude, the sister of the two converts who was 
herself a Catholic, having been brought up in her mother's 
Faith, addressed a petition to the Holy Father Pius IX. im- 
ploring him to deign to initiate the cause of F. Clement's 
beatification and cannonisation. 



in Father Clement's House. 255 

CHAPTER XVI. 

Meetings and evening Conferences in F. Clement's House. 

AFTER the heavy fatigues of the day, some hours of rest 
were surely necessary to F. Clement in the evening : but after 
he became known in Vienna, this was impossible. And when- 
ever he came back from his labours in the church, or his 
late visits to the sick and dying, he always found his house 
full of people , mostly young men , all anxions to see and 
hear him. 

And this, so far from displeasing F. Clement, was really 
his delight : for he knew no other rest than to work for the 
honour and glory of his Lord and the salvation of souls. 

His house was open to all and when he came back, often 
wet through and chilled to the bone, he would never think 
of himself for a moment, but coming in and finding 2 or 
30 young men waiting for him, would playfully welcome 
them, saying: "O! you young rogues! what do you want?" 
and then enter into conversation with them one after the 
other, each feeling that they had found a Father. They were 
of every class ; students in theology and in medicine, law- 
yers, government officials, tradesmen, some bringing a friend 
whom they hoped to convert, others wishing to go to con- 
fession after some passage in a sermon of his which had 
struck them, and so on. To all he showed himself as he was, 
simple, straightforward and just: and it w T as those qualities 
which gave him such ahold over these young men. He never 
flattered any one and knew how to put down vanity and pride 
or false ambition : while he encouraged the shy and timid 
ones by a few paternal words. 

Often at mid-day, he would have some poor students to 
dine with him, making them first make a little examination 
of conscience, and recite the Litany of our Lady and then 
sit down to table, he walking up and down and helping 



256 Meetings and Evening Conferences 

everybody, eating only a little scrap himself. And when 
they used to implore him to sit down and have his meal 
comfortably, he would say langhing : "What does it matter to 
you if I am satisfied f 

In the same way, he used to make his guests sup with 
him and they were so numerous that very often there was 
not room for them at the long table. After supper, he would 
lead them to talk on some spiritual subject, or read to them 
from some instructive book, mingling his own annotations 
as he went on. "I have often seen him," writes Cardinal 
Rauscher, "sitting in the midst of these young men, his 
eyes almost closed, but listening attentively to whatever was 
being said or read tending to edification ; while from time to 
time, he would put in a word to prevent the little conference 
from becoming formal or wearisome." 

One evening, during the conversation, a violent thunder- 
storm came on, the lightening almost blinding their eyes 
and the thunder making every one tremble. F. Clement 
began explaining that passages in the Gospel: For as the 
lightening that ligtheneth from tinder Heaven, shine th unto the parts 
that are under Heaven, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be in 
his day". St. Luke. XVII. Chap. 24. V. 

"And so," added Father Clement, "it will be at the mo- 
ment of our death. Then , with the clearness of a flash of 
lightening, will all our past life appear to our souls, only 
with a far different light from that with which we think of 
it and see it now, for it will be in the light of Eternity." 
"These words," wrote Father Einn, who was present, "struck 
his young auditors so much that many of them asked at 
once if he would hear their confessions?" 

As these young men were at an age when the strongest 
temptations are felt, F. Clement was perpetually on the 
watch to defend them as it were, from themselves and by 
keeping them occupied and amused during these perilous 
hours of the night to preserve them from dangerous oc- 



in Father Clement's House. 257 

casions and bad company. He would intreat them not to 
feed their imaginations with love stories and exciting novels 
and to frequent the Sacraments as being the best safeguards 
of chastity. Above all, he hated idleness especially for young- 
priests and would say to them: "That if one thus conse- 
crated to God did not spend every moment in His service, 
he would undoubtedly end badly." 

He used to encourage his young men to talk and give 
their opinions upon different subjects and ventilate their 
doubts and difficulties. If any dispute arose, he would in- 
stantly calm it with a few wise words. He hated detraction 
more than the plague and one of the things which pleased 
him most was when any one took up the defence of the ab- 
sent. Wonderful also was the patience with which he bore 
with the defects and faults of his disciples, always contenting 
himself with their good will and leaving the rest to time. 
The only thing he could not bear was anything like fraud 
or double-dealing, especially if cloaked by a pretended veil 
of piety. Not that he ever was himself deceived, for Werner 
used to say of him: "I really believe he could see through 
a deal table!" Sometimes, among those who came to him, 
were one or two whose interior did not correspond with their 
exterior appearance. One day a Sister remarked one of these 
strangers who prayed and sang more fervently, apparently, 
than all the rest and she congratulated F. Clement on the 
piety of this new disciple. But he answered. "I am not sa- 
tisfied about him : look at him and you will see that his soul 
is not at peace." 

The same observation was made by him with alas! too 
much reason, about Dr. Wolf, who at one time was a devout 
Cantor in the Ursuline Church. As the great Bishop and 
Doctor, St. Gregory, discovered in Julian the serpent who 
was afterwards to pervert the Roman Purple, so F. Clement 
detected in this youth, who seemed so pious, the future apo- 
state and adventurer. 

17 



258 Meetings and Evening Conferences in F. Clement's House. 

Joseph Wolf was born in Bavaria in 1795 of Jewish pa- 
rents. In 1812, he was baptised at Prague and then went to 
study for two years in Vienna where he made acquaintance 
with F. Clement, who, however, distrusted him and would 
not admit him among his disciples. In 1 8 1 6, he went to Rome 
and managed to get into the College of Propaganda, but 
after a few months was expelled for keeping up a secret cor- 
respondence with Protestants, defending heretical proposi- 
tions, and turning everything and every body in Rome into 
ridicule. Notwithstanding this, Cardinal Litta, then Prefect 
of Propaganda, treated him kindly and gave him letters to 
the Nunzio at Vienna, Mong 1 *. Leardi. At the Nunzio's re- 
quest, F. Clement saw him and pointed out to him his er- 
rors, but in vain. After that, Wolf associated himself with 
some English Protestants, travelled in America and other 
countries, and finally became Rector of an English Prote- 
stant Church! so that F. Clement's distrust was fully justi- 
fied. It is fair to say, however, that, before he died, he paid 
a visit to the Provincial of the Redemptorists in London, 
enquired after his old friends and asked for their prayers, 
dying in 1862 on the 2 nd of May. These constant meetings 
at F. Clement's house, however, gave umbrage to the Police, 
who began to suspect him, as usual, of conspiring against 
the state. Under this pretext, they sent one or two of their 
agents, who, under pretence of being students, came in the 
evening with the rest. One of these men pretended to have 
been a great traveller and to have made the acquaintance 
of many illustrious people : but F. Clement detected them 
at once and warned his disciples of their presence. He spoke, 
however, as usual, on general subjects, but with increased 
prudence. And afterwards finding that these domiciliary 
visits continued, he used to take his young men out walking 
with him, especially in summer; and often on the bastions 
of the city which were much frequented. Sometimes the 
Viennese used to gather round him to listen to the instruc- 



His Anxiety for the Welfare of the Church. 259 

tive stories he would tell to his disciples; and when the 
"Angelus" sounded, all of them would lift their caps and re- 
peat the "Ave Maria", to the astonishment of the bystan- 
ders, but likewise to their admiration, as they saw that they 
said it so simply and without any human respect. Then he 
would dismiss them to their homes, where they returned, 
strengthened in all their good resolutions and full of respect- 
ful love for their father and guide. 

It is impossible to express the good he did by these fami- 
liar conferences and the way he thus contributed to revive 
the faith of the Viennese. Many of these young men who 
had never before thought seriously, embraced the Religious 
state and others became excellent public servants and did 
honour to their holy teacher. 

But besides all these, many persons of a higher rank used 
to seek out F. Clement and consult him in all matters of 
importance. Among these was Prince Alexander Hohenlohe 
and many others, even non-Catholics, like the famous Pro- 
testant Librarian, Perthes, who was so edified by a visit he 
paid to him in 1816, that he has written an account of it, 
describing the poor dwelling of F. Clement, and the way 
"his face beamed with a celestial light such as he had never 
seen on any other man." We need only conclude this chapter 
with the words of Cardinal Rauscher : "That F. Clement was 
held in the highest esteem by all, noble and simple, learned 
and unlearned, and that even the most bitter Protestants 
looked upon him with respect and even with veneration." 

CHAPTER XVII. 
His anxiety for the welfare of the Universal Church, 

AND ESPECIALLY AT THE TIME OF THE CONGRESS OF VlENNA. 

THERE is no doubt that Father Clement exercised a very 
important influence in the affairs of the Church at certain 
critical times : and if her preponderance in Austria and Ger- 



260 His Anxiety for the Welfare of the Church, 

many were not utterly destroyed by the cleverness and cun- 
ning of her enemies, it was mainly due to the anxious solli- 
citude of this great servant of God. Many times did he warn 
the Holy See of grave impending dangers and the Apostolic 
Nunzios both in Warsaw and Vienna never failed to consult 
him on all important occasions. "One day", reports Cecilia 
Choloniewska, "finding myself with the Nunzio, Monsignor 
Severoli, he pointed out Father Clement to me, saying in 
a low voice so that he might not hear : "Do you see that ven- 
erable Religious? Simple and unpretending as he appears 
exteriorly, there is no one who is so good a judge of impor- 
tant affairs. Very often the most difficult and complicated 
questions come before us, which appear almost impossible 
of solution. In consequence, I constantly send for that good 
Father and never have I had occasion to regret having done 
so : for what with the sanctity of his person , the clearness 
of his judgment, the force of his reasoning and the simpli- 
city of his explanations of his views, he persuades the most 
perverse and hostile of our opponents and we consequently 
obtain what, at first, seemed simply impossible." 

Cardinal Consalvi, who represented the Pope at the Con- 
gress of Vienna, gives a similar testimony : and affirmed that 
he never acted without consulting him. And it was just in 
this Congress that F. Clement was able to render such im- 
portant services to the Church, thus proving the end pro- 
posed by Divine Providence in leading him to Vienna. 

It was expected that the Congress , among other things, 
should reorganise the Ecclesiastical affairs of Germany, which 
were in the most lamentable confusion. But what was needed 
for this, was a man with an accurate knowledge of the actual 
position of affairs and one who was prepared to act with a 
zeal proportioned to the need. Where was such a man to 
be found? Consalvi and Severoli had not enough knowledge 
of the state of things: Dalberg, Primate of Germany had be- 
trayed the most sacred interests of the Church and found 



at the Time of the Congress of Vienna. 261 

no better representative at the Congress than that Baron 
Wessenberg whom Ave have before mentioned, a member of 
the sect called "The Illuminated", and who was his Vicar 
General at Constance. This man was related to a great 
number of the aristocracy : and his brother, who was Autrian 
Minister of State and one of the delegates at the Congress, 
was in great favour with those in the highest circles ; while 
his principles alternated between Josephism and Protestant- 
ism. The Congress opened its sittings on the 1 st of Novbr. 
1814 and by the 27 th of that month, Wessenberg presented 
a memorial on the reform of the Church in Germany. He 
proposed to constitute a National German Church, directed 
by a Primate under whose control all ecclesiastical affairs 
should be placed. The centre of all ecclesiastical adminis- 
tration was to be a national, provincial and diocesan synod. 
The organisation of this new Church was to be established 
by a uniform agreement of all the Confederate States; and 
then form an essential part of the Constitution of the Ger- 
man Empire. 

In this satanic work, which was subversive of the very 
essence of the Catholic Church, Wessenberg was supported 
by the Ambassadors of Prussia, Hanover and Bavaria, by 
Count Spiegel (then Deacon of the Minister Chapter and 
afterwards Archbishop of Cologne), and by many others. The 
defence of Catholic interests rested solely in the weak hands 
of a Prebendary of the Chapter of Spires, Helferich, and in 
the Baron von Wamboldt, Dean of the Chapter of Worms. 
These two had been chosen by Cardinal Consalvi to defend 
the Catholic cause and it is fair to say that they showed 
great zeal in the matter. But he who sustained them in this 
difficult undertaking was no other than F. Clement, who by 
his continual labours, counsels and exhortations supplied 
what was wanting in their knowledge and gave them the 
strength and courage necessary for the struggle with these 
powerful schismatics. 



262 His Anxiety f 07^ the Welfare of the Church, 

F. Srna, who then lived with F. Clement, narrates that 
Helferich came every day to consult him and that the dif- 
ferent memorandum presented to Congress were all drawn 
up by F. Clement, while F. Sahelli spent many hours each 
night in making copies of them. If therefore the schismatic 
devices of Wessenberg were completely defeated, the person 
to whom the victory was mainly due was F. Clement. 

Beck, Wessenberg' s panegyrist, never could sufficiently 
deplore the failure of his scheme and attributes it mainly to 
the influence of the Schlegels, Schlosser, Werner and Pilat : 
but he omits Miiller, by whose writings and influence with 
certain eminent diplomatists much good was effected, and 
totally ignores F. Clement who was, in reality, the master 
and director of the whole Catholic movement. Cardinal 
Reisach speaking of this says: w At the time of the Congress, 
Father Clement was the centre round which all earnest and 
learned Catholics were gathered ; and by his aid they were 
able to defeat the schismatics, who strove to form a new 
National German Church independent of the Pope." Beck 
laments also the defection of Bavaria in this matter, which 
was the more wonderful as the real Governor of Bavaria at 
that moment was the powerful Minister Montgelas, who was 
most bitter against the Church ; and Count Rechberg was 
the Ambassador at the Congress, who certainly could not 
boast of any Catholic principles. But the real reason was, 
that the hereditary Prince Louis of Bavaria, who had great 
influence over his Father King Maximilan I, was an intimate 
friend of F. Clement's and took his advice on every occa- 
sion, visiting him constantly in his poor dwelling and often 
staying, as we have already mentioned, half the night with 
him.* 

* One of the fruits of these visits was, the dismissal of Montgelas, and 
very soon after the Congress, negotiations were set on foot in Bavaria 
for the establishment of a Concordat with the Holy See, which was finally 
signed in the year 1817. 



at the Time of the Congress of Vienna. 263 

Whilst Father Clement was thus fighting assiduously the 
enemies of the Church, he did not forget by earnest prayer 
to beseech of God the salvation of their souls. And these is 
reason to believe that for Dalberg, at any rate, these prayers 
were granted ; as during his last years he became an intimate 
friend of Dr. Wittmann, the Rector of the Ratisbon Semi- 
nary. And after the Congress of Vienna , Dalberg gave up 
Wessenberg and his proceedings and led ever after a simple, 
penitent life, dying as a good Catholic on the 10 th of Febr. 
1817. That very year Wessenberg was elected by the Canons 
of Constance Administrator of the Diocese : an election the 
Pope refused to sanction. Wessenberg upon this, started for 
Rome to defend himself: but Pius VII would not admit him 
to his presence until he had promised to resign his post of 
Administrator and expressed penitence for his past conduct. 
But Wessenberg' s pride would not brook this submission 
and so great was the annoyance caused by his intrigues at 
Rome, that Cardinal Consalvi desired F. Clement to forward 
to the Pope certain writings of his which abundantly justi- 
fied the Pope's conduct in the matter. Wessenberg, furious 
at being thus unmasked , left Rome and went to Carlsruhe 
to give an account of his failure to the Grand Duke of Ba- 
den and continued to administer the Diocese against the 
Pontifical Decrees, becoming at last a declared schismatic. 
The sorrow felt by F. Clement at this proceeding may be 
judged by a letter he wrote at that time to Pius VII. in 
which he said: "That Germany ran a greater risk at that 
moment than when she was the seat of the late disastrous 
wars; for that he foresaw a rupture of that country from 
Rome, which could only he averted by the intercession of 
the Saints." 

Finally Wessenberg died impenitent, on the 9 th of Aug. 
1860, having made, before he expired, the impious declara- 
tion that he died faithful to his heresy: and the Freemasons of 
Constance, to honour his memory, called their lodge after him ! 



264 His Anxiety for the Welfare of the Church. 

Ten days after the death of Archbishop Dalberg, F. Cle- 
ment by desire of the Nunzio , Severoli , wrote a letter to 
Cardinal Litta in Rome to urge strongly the appointment 
of Baron Francis von Wamboldt , Dean of the Chapter of 
Worms, as Dalberg' s Successor: F. Clement having known 
him intimately at Vienna during the Congress. "It has 
pleased our Lord," he writes, "to call to Himself the man 
under whose authority the clergy have been guilty of such 
great disorders. But it is most important that a man should 
be appointed as his successor who should be able to remedy 
this state of things and also be of sufficiently high rank to 
disarm the opposition of the nobility. Baron von Wamboldt 
is of most ancient family, brother-in-law of Count Stadion 
and related to Count Coudenhove, Prince Metternich and 
almost all the highest aristocracy of the Empire. More than 
once a Wamboldt has been chosen so fill the electoral 
Throne of Mayence : he is also well thought of in Bavaria. 
Another thing is that he does not seek for the Episcopate 
and would only accept it if insisted on by the Holy Father. 
All the good earnestly desire him ; for he is devoted to the 
Holy See and knows how to conciliate all parties. He would 
he an excellent counterpoise also to the machinations of 
Sailer and Wessenberg. These two men, under a pretence 
of devotion , are continually trying to bring about a schism 
with Rome and the establishment of a new national German 
Church. It is true that Wambold is not a man of deepi 
learning, but he has a real Catholic heart ; and it is easy to 
give him subordinates who could supply his needs in other 
respects. I do not think I deceive myself when I assert that 
in this matter 1 only seek the greater honour and glory of 
God. I intreat your Eminence to do your utmost to come to 
the assistance of this poor distracted Church in Germany: 
because although it is true that her chief enemy is no more, 
still we are not yet by any means out of danger." 

In a postscript to this letter, which is attested by Cardinal 



His Zeal for the Purity of the Faith. 265 

Reisach, F. Clement mentions having also written in the 
same sense to the Hereditary Prince of Bavaria. 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

His zeal for the purity of the faith. His judgment on 

Sailer and Bolzano. 

IN the year 1816, the Bavarian Government proposed 
Sailer to fill the vacant See of Augsburg. The Nunzio at 
Vienna, Cardinal Severoli, asked Father Clement's opinion, 
who answered according to his conscience: "That Sailer 
was famous not only in Germany and in Hungary, but also 
throughout Europe : that it was true that at the University 
where he was Professor, while others declared themselves 
against Christ, he alone spoke of Him, and that he had 
many pious men among his followers. But at the same 
time, his opinions and doctrines were not always in accord- 
ance with the teaching of the Church. He was much given 
to mysticism and was looked upon as the head of that sect : 
and therefore he did not think his appointment to the 
Bishopric would be a wise one." 

At that time the Concordat was being established between 
Bavaria and Rome : and the Bavarian Government accord- 
ingly addressed a similar question as to Sailer to the Nunzio 
at Munich. The latter answered in the negative : upon which 
the Hereditary Prince Louis, who had a particular affection 
for Sailer, he having been his Tutor in old times, applied 
to Cardinal Convalsi to complain of the Nunzio' s decision. 

The Cardinal replied : 

"We are not ignorant in Rome of the talents of Mong r . 
Sailer, nor of the books he has written, nor of the infiuence 
he exercises over many persons: but we have also many 
things against him. He has intimate relations with persons 
holding very suspicious views and his conduct at Dollingen 
did not meet with the approbation of the ordinary : while at 



266 His Judgment on Sailer and Bolzano. 

Coire the Bishop has prohibited the reading of his theo- 
logical works by his students your Royal Highness who 

so justly esteems the great virtues and sound doctrine of 
the venerable F. Hofbauer lately dead, will not be offended 
if I tell you the idea he entertained of Sailer by sending 
you a private note which he wrote upon the subject at the 
request of Cardinal Severoli, then Nunzio at Vienna: and 
I beg your R. Highness to read the concluding paragraph : 
"If Sailer be created Bishop of Augsburg, or any other im- 
portant See, few ecclesiastics will like to be placed under 
his jurisdiction: for they think him more dangerous than 
Luther, who tried openly to destroy the Church of God, 

while Sailer does so secretly." 

The high esteem in which your Royal Highness holds 
Sailer and the protection with which you honour him, have, 
however, so much weight with the Holy See , that if Sailer 
will draw up a public declaration, in clear and simple terms, 
of his obedience to the Catholic Faith, his condemnation of 
the principles and maxims of the schismatics and his anxiety 
to submit himself to the judgment of the Sovereign Pon- 
tiff as regards his writings and opinions , His Holiness will 
have no objection to promote him to the dignity of Bishop. 
.... If Mong r . Sailer be really animated by the sentiments 
ascribed to him by your Royal Highness, he can have no 
objection to taking this step which will only redound to his 

honour 

Cardinal Consalvi. 

26. July 1820. 

This letter was communicated to Sailer by the Prince, 
who, thereupon published a declaration of fidelity to the 
Catholic Church and a condemnation of any doctrines or 
opinions he may have held contrary to the Truth, submit- 
ting himself to the judgment of the Holy See. 

In consequence, after some years, Sailer was appointed 
Coadjutor to the Bishop of Ratisbon, Mong r . Wolf, and 






F. Clement deserves well of Catholic Literature. 267 

after his death, became his successor in the diocese : but he 
happily only lived to administer it for four years, dying 
on the 20 tlx of May 1833. 

Of Bernard Bolzano, Professor of Religion in Prague, we 
will only say a few words. In the later years of his life F. 
Clement heard from several Prague students the way in 
which Bolzano taught pure rationalistic doctrines: and 
alarmed and grieved at the probable consequences , F. Cle- 
ment went to the Parish priest of the Court, the Theologian 
Frint (afterwards Bishop) begging him to warn the Emperor 
Francis of the fact. The Emperor desired a certain Professor 
of dogmatic Theology to give him a report in writing of 
Bolzano's teaching: but this man excused himself after a 
year's delay, saying, "it was difficult to give an opinion". 
The Emperor, much irritated at this answer exclaimed: 
"I am not a Theologian : but I know that such doctrines are 
not Catholic !" And he insisted on Bolzano being sent away 
from the Chair of the University, while his lectures to the 
young Academicians, being examined by the Holy See, 
were at once put on the Index. Thus was the wise judg- 
ment of F. Clement approved by the highest authority. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Father Clement deserves well of Catholic Literature. 

AT the time when F. Clement came to Vienna, Catholic 
literature in that City was at its lowest ebb. No Catholic 
books were published either by Clergy or Seculars: and 
even preachers had recourse to Protestant authors, who 
were quoted by all as models of eloquence and purity of 
language. While the Catholic were so inert, the Jansenists, 
Protestants and so-called "Illuminated" of all sorts, published 
an immense quantity of books in order to diffuse their 
pernicious doctrines and draw away the people from the 



268 F. Clement deserves well 

Church. It was not even possible to obtain a common Ca- 
tholic Prayer-book and the people were obliged to make use 
of a little heretical book called "God is pure Love", which 
might have done for freemasons better than for good Ca- 
tholics. 

F. Clement was in despair at this state of things and ex- 
claimed: "Look at the heretics, who labour day and night 
to diffuse their bad publications, men who would banish our 
Lord from the whole of Europe : and yet they spare neither 
time nor money to propagate their errors ! If only Catholics 
would show one half of their zeal for Religion ! But although 
these poor Germans would gladly read, I do not know any 
books I could place in their hands ! " We may easily guess 
that F. Clemend did not content himself with vain lamenta- 
tions. Although he had not himself time to write, he had 
many disciples and friends eminent in the literary world 
and he at once determined to set them to work, each accord- 
ing to his power and ability. He pointed out to them how 
the power of writing was a gift from God, to be used in 
His service and for the advantage of their neighbours ; and 
thus he was morally if not actually the cause of the revival 
of Catholic literature in Vienna. He first started a little 
Periodical entitled "The Olive Branch" which appeared from 
1819 to 1823, under the editorship of one of his disciples 
George Passy, and which contained a number of excellent 
articles on religion, literature and poetry. Madlener, Veith, 
Silbert, Antony Passy and many others contributed to this 
weekly paper, which was widely circulated both in Austria 
and throughout Germany, and the celebrated Joseph Gor- 
res, well knowing the lack of good books , had the happy 
thought of presenting the Redemptorists with a house in 
which they might establish a printing press. 

Even over celebrated writers, like Schlegel, Miiller, Buch- 
holz etc., F. Clement exercised a great influence, for these 
authors had such an opinion of his judgment that they 



of Catholic Literature. 269 

rarely published anything without submitting first their 
M. S. to him, when he corrected them, if necessary; and 
they were always ready to make the alterations he wished. 
Another valuable publication at that time was the "Austrian 
Observer" under the editorship of F. Clement's great friend, 
von Pilat. Following the inspirations of his beloved master, 
no article was ever admitted into this paper contrary to 
Catholic Doctrine : and as at that moment it was the only 
political and official Journal, the importance and advantage 
to the public of having it in good hands were incontestable. 
Finally, we must mention one more work inspired by 
F. Clement which was the "Little book of the Missions", edited 
by F. Madlener and written by different disciples of F. Cle- 
ment, which was intended in some way to take the place of 
the public missions and retreats which at that time could 
not be given. It contained, in clear but simple language, a 
compendium of moral and Catholic Doctrines, an instruc- 
tion on the Sacraments of Penance and of the Blessed Eu- 
charist, various meditations on the great maxims, a rule of 
life and a collection of simple litanies, indulgenced prayers 
and other devotions. This hook had such an immense cir- 
culation that it is difficult to say how many editions it went 
through; and it produced incalculable good in Germany 
and Switzerland as well as in Austria ; and likewise brought 
about innumerable conversions. The result of all these 
efforts was, that before F. Clement's death, Catholic litera- 
ture recovered its old vigour, while his zeal inflamed the 
most able men to give their time to its promotion. Catholics 
were roused from their lethargy and the science of Religion 
and morals, which the Josephism of the previous years had 
well nigh destroyed, began again to flourish and bear fruit 
to the salvation of innumerable souls. * 

* Much good was also done by a circulating library founded at F. Cle- 
ment's instigation by Ms friend Baron Penkler. This good man was like- 
wise President of the Society for the diffusion of good books founded by 



270 The Viciseitudes of the Congregation in Switzerland. 



CHAPTER XX. 

The ticissitudes of the Congregation in Switzerland. F. 
Clement sends Missionaries into Wallachia. Who was Fa- 
ther Libotzky. 

THE great fatigues endured by Father Clement in Vienna 
did not prevent his watching over the spread of his beloved 
Congregation. We may remember that a small number of 
Redemptorists under the care of F. Passerat, had established 
themselves at Vissach in the Vallais. They remained there 
from December 1807 to August 1811, during which time, 
the Parish priest, Adrian von Curten, never ceased showing 
them the greatest affection. Father Sabelli joined them from 
Vienna ; and had the instruction of a youth of noble family, 
Pete% Joseph de Preux, who afterwards became Bishop of 
Sion, and was much distinguished for his piety and ability. 

When the Vallais Canton was annexed to France (in 
1810) it was felt impossible for the Fathers to remain there : 
and the indefatigable Father Passerat tried to find a refuge 
for them at Wiirzburg. 

The good Archduke Ferdinand would gladly have given 
them a house ; but was afraid of offending Napoleon , who 
was the Protector of the Rhenish Confederation. The only 
thing he could do, therefore, to show his sympathy, was to 
send Father Passerat a large sum of money for his journey. 

F. Passerat then went off to Vienna to consult the Vicar 

F. Diesbach under the title of " Christian Friendship" and which still 
exists in Austria. When the Redemptorist Congregation was founded in 
Sta. Maria della Scala in Vienna, F. George Passy established a circu- 
lating litrary in connection with the house, which at present exists every- 
where in the monasteries of the order. At Friburg in Switzerland, on 
Feast-days and holidays, a number of young workmen meet in this Li- 
brary and after a few serious words, amuse themselves in that way with 
instructive and interesting reading. Great good arises from these meet- 
ings and of these youths, some have joined the Congregation and others 
have become good fathers of families. 



The Vicissitudes of the Congregation in Sivitzerland . 271 

General, F. Clement. But as no refuge could be found for 
them at that moment , in Austria , he returned to Switzer- 
land and went to Friburg , where the holy Bishop of Lau- 
sanne, Maximus Guisolan, of the Capuchin order, received 
them with every demonstration of affection and obtained 
leave from the Council of State for them to live together, if 
not as a Community, at any rate, as individuals and private 
citizens. F. Passerat joyfully summoned his students from 
the Vallais to the new house in Friburg : where , under the 
guidance of a Prefect of studies, they lived in obedience to 
the rule and continued their philosophical and theological 
course at the College of St. Michael. In the year 1815 F. 
Passerat asked permission of the Government to live in 
community: but for two years this permission was with 
held. Finally in 1817 the Prefect of Gruyeres, John de 
Odet, announced to F. Passerat that in his Province there 
was a monastery which had formerly belonged to the Cister- 
cians and then to the Trappists and was now in the pos- 
session of the Government. F. Passerat went to see it, liked 
it and at once applied for leave to establish his Community 
there. This affair was discussed by the Grand Council in 
1818 at three successive sittings ; and in spite of a very vio- 
lent opposition, the petition was voted by a large majority. 
The friends of the Congregation took care to point out the 
heroic conduct of the Redemptorist Fathers w T hen the typhus 
fever broke out in the camp at the time of the war; on 
which occasion those Fathers offered themselves for the 
work of the hospitals both in Friburg and Berne. F. Czech 
and two Polish priests, Biedrzyki and Schulski, had speci- 
ally devoted themselves to those poor soldiers who knew no 
other language : and all caught the fever during their cha- 
ritable work ; though happily they recovered. 

No sooner was the leave obtained, than F. Passerat 
hastened to take possession of this new Convent of Val- 
santa. It was a day of great rejoicing, Fathers and Brothers 



272 F. Clement sends Missionaries into Wallachia. 

going in procession from the Parish Church to the new 
monastery and joyfully intoning the Te Deum. At last they 
had found a refuge where they could serve God together in 
peace and with regular observance of their rule, which for 
so many years had been impossible. So great was their 
satisfaction that they seemed to forget the lack of all ne- 
cessary things and even the hunger which they suffered the 
first few days. Very soon after, they were able to begin 
giving missions; and that not only in the Canton itself, but 
also in Alsace. 

About this time another foundation was proposed to the 
Congregation in Wallachia : which did not prevent F. Cle- 
ment from clinging to the hope of soon sending his mis- 
sioners to America : as may be seen by the following letter 
which he addressed to F. Blasucci the Father General in 
Naples on the 25 th of September 1815. 

"I receive constant letters from F. Passerat, in which he 
tells me that with the help of God, they enjoy perfect peace, 
that they labour without intermission, and that they are 
greatly esteemed by the people to whom they give spiritual 
aid. They have begun to give missions everywhere with ex- 
traordinary fruit. F. Passerat is indeed a most excellent 
superior : he is gifted with wonderful prudence and personal 
holiness; he is exact in the observance of our rules and 
seems to me to be patience personified. He is burning with 
zeal for the salvation of souls and seems to care nothing 
for fatigues or dangers. He has travelled on foot upwards 
of a thousand Italian miles, and twice he has been in this 
way to see and consult me at Vienna, actuated solely by 
the love of God and the interests of the Congregation. In 
a word, the Congregation possesses in F. Passerat a mirror 
of all virtues : and I therefore venture to beg your Rever- 
ence, that in the event of my death he may be my successor. 
He has the greatest desire to be sent with some of our 
Fathers to America and wrote to me not long ago hoping 



He sends Missionaries into Walachia. 273 

that this, his earnest wish, might ere long be accom- 
plished. 

Nothing would give me greater pleasure and I have done 
all I can to obtain the necessary passports for which I only 
await the answer." 

Whilst F. Clement was preparing everything in this way 
for the foundation of a house in another hemisphere, Father 
F. Ercolani, a Passionist, had been just consecrated Vicar 
Apostolic of Wallachia by the Nunzio Mongr. Severoli; 
and hearing that F. Clement was just going to send some 
Fathers to America, implored him instead, to found a house 
first in Wallachia, where the needs, he declared, were even 
greater. F. Clement yielded and at once notified the fact to 
the Procurator General in Rome. He writes on the 4 th of 
Oct. : " That his missioners were starting the following day 
with Mongr. Ercolani and that if he had consented, it was 
from the urgent intreaties of that Bishop, who had assured 
him that he had literally no good priests in his new diocese : 
that, in consequence, the Catholics were all relapsing into 
schism or becoming Mahometans : that there were thousands 
of German Catholics in Bucharest who could not find a 
single priest to hear their confessions or preach to them in 
their own language, so that they attended the Calvinist ser- 
vices to the great injury of their Faith." 

F. Clement provided his missioners with money, church 
ornaments , a little library and all he could think of as ne- 
cessary for the new foundation : appointing F. Joseph Fort- 
huber as Superior and with him, the Cleric, Hatscher the 
lay-brother, Matthew Widhalm and the student, Joseph Li- 
botzky, of whom we will say a few words. * 



* F. Clement was always deeply interested in this Wallachian mission. 
In a letter to F. von Schlosser on the 23 rd of Oct. 1816 he calls Bucharest 
"A cloaca maxima of every nation". "Many youths of 18, 'he adds,' have 
had no religious instruction whatever and do not know which faith to he- 
long to. There are no schools nor any kind of education." He says also 

18 



274 Who ivas Father Libotzki. 

He was born in Prague on the 17 th of Febr. 1789, but his 
parents afterwards removed to Trieste, where they directed 
a mercantile hfouse. His father died in 1808, and to help his 
mother, the young Joseph came to Vienna , where he ob- 
tained a good appointment. His first thought was to find a 
good Confessor, and the Count secretary, Herr Cavallar, took 
him to F. Clement. Josoph took great care of his little 
brothers and sisters and when his mother insisted on his 
taking them to the play, he yielded ; but contrived by going 
too soon, to weary and disgust them with it. 

On the other hand he would do anything to amuse them 
in other ways, while he introduced them to F. Clement, 
taught them to say the Rosary and told them endless stories 
of saints. When his mother went back to Prague in 1813 
as nurse and governess in the household of the Duchess 
d'Arenberg, F. Clement took Joseph into his own house 
and finding him anxious to embrace the religious state gave 
him the habit secretly on the 24 th of Septbr. 1814, and the 
following year admitted him to the religious profession. He 
was the only student whom F. Clement professed in Vienna, 
but was not, of course, allowed to wear his habit in public. 
Finally, on the 5 th of Oct., with a passport which pretended 
that he was the servant of the Bishop, he started for Bucha- 
rest. On the 5 th of Dec, Hascher made his religious profes- 
sion in the hands of F. Forthuber and on the 23 rd he and 
Libotzki were ordained priests. Henceforth all three shared 
in the apostolic labours of this arduous mission, first in a 
miserable house occupied by the Bishop at Ciopole : and after- 
wards at Bucharest. Of the labours of these missioners , F, 
Clement writes on the 23 rd of Nov. 1816 to F. von Schlosser 
in these terms: "Our good Father Joseph is doing wonders 
in that savage mission, preaching in German and hearing 

"that if he could only get help from Propaganda, he would found a large 
house there, from whence this vast field could he cultivated and a plenti- 
ful harvest gathered in." 






Who ivas Father Libotzki. 275 

confessions both in German and Wallachian: lie has also 
established a school which was more needed than anything 
else. That huge city is like a forest full of wild beasts : there 
is an utter ignorance of every kind of Christianity : men seem 
to live without any thought of the future, only caring for 
spending the money they have earned in every kind of vi- 
cious amusement and excess. Parents bring up their chil- 
dren only to work: they don't seem even to understand they 
have souls. Fancy what a field of work there is for our good 
F. Joseph! In the simplicity of his heart, as the Bishop 
writes, he has already done 'great good and brought about a 
sensible change in the habits of the people. He and his 
companious bear every trial and privation with wonderful 
courage and patience, provided they can only succeed in 
bringing back these poor Wallachian sheep into the fold." 

Nor did they confine their labours to Bucharest, but gave 
missions all round the country, as at Kimnik, Pitesty, Ter- 
gowest, Ploiesti, Campolongo and other places, but espe- 
cially to the Bulgarians living on the left side of the Danube. 
Everywhere the people received them with open arms, for 
their spiritual wants were indescribable and for want of 
Catholic teachers, two entire counties had become Maho- 
metan ! 

When the Fathers arrived in any of these places they 
went to the Inn , which was always a clay hut open alike 
to man and beast, and began at once to hear the men's con- 
fessions. The following morning the cattle were led out, the 
place made as clean as possible and then they heard the 
women's confessions: after which Holy mass was celebrated 
on a portable altar, Holy Communion given and then a 
very simple explanation of the first doctrines of the Catholic 
faith. After that, the Fathers went to visit the sick, settle 
lawsuits and disputes, for the priest in those countries is 
looked upon as judge, and then went away, blessing their 
poor and faithful penitents in the name of the Lord. 



276 Who ivas Father Libotzki. 

But the fatigues entailed upon the missioners were more 
than human nature could stand and greatly distressed F. 
Clement, who, if careless of his own health, was extremely 
careful of that of his sons. The Prince of Wallachia was very 
well disposed towards the Fathers : hut the schismatics did 
all they could to embiter their lives : and the Bishop, who 
had been so extremely anxious to induce F. Clement to send 
them, did so little for them that they could only find a mi- 
serable little hired house in which to live. Finally, in 1819, 
F. Libotzky fell ill with a dangerous fever at Bucharest in 
consequence of the hardships and privations to which they 
were exposed. And soon after, the Congregation being es- 
tablished in Vienna, he and the other Fathers were recalled 
to the Austrian Capital. F. Libotzky had the happiness of 
seeing his two sisters on his return and finding them faith- 
ful to his early teaching. In 1826, he was made Rector at 
Vienna and was most watchful over the establishment of 
regular discipline in the new house. He was too weak and 
ill to preach, but was indefatigable in the confessional and 
often could not say his mass till 10 or 11 o'clock owing to 
the great number of his penitents. To his mother, who im- 
plored him to take more care of his health, he replied: 
"Everything happens to me as I wish." And on her looking 
astonished at this answer he *added : "I only wish that which 
God wishes, and so I am always contented." 

He visited his mother frequently during her last illness 
and brought her holy viaticum. She died on the 2 nd of July 
1833 as her son was saying mass for her. 

In the terribly severe winter of 1840 — 41 F. Libotzky went 
early to say mass in the Church of the Redemptorists in 
Vienna, then went to see the Salesians and came back with 
a violent chill. His fever returned and on the 13 th day of 
his illness he slept in the Lord. This was on the 26 th of Jan. 
1841. His death was most edifying; and in the paroxysm of 



Reestablishment of the Congregation in Poland. 211 

his agony lie was always speaking of and praying for his 
r 'dear Bulgarians." 



CHAPTER XXI. 

The anxiety felt by F. Clement for the reestablishment 
of his Congregation in Poland. A further notice of the 

LIFE AND DEATH OF F. PoDGORSKI. 

FATHER Clement, as we have seen, had to give up Po- 
land at the very moment when the harvest was the most 
abundant and the fields he had cultivated for 20 years pro- 
mised the most abundant fruits. We may remember that 
when the Fathers left the Fortress of Kustrin, they were 
dispersed in different directions. F. Podgorski, with F. Cle- 
ment's permission returned to Warsaw, w r here he lived near 
the Church of the Holy Cross, hoping by degrees to collect 
one or two of the Fathers with him. In the mean time, he 
gave missions, with the Lazarists, in the Dioceses of Warsaw, 
Plock and Sandomir : and though, of course, he was at the 
head of them all, he never would be made Superior for fear 
of drawing upon himself the attention of the Government. 
There was one mission in particular given in the church of 
the Oratorians at Studiana, at which the number of Commu- 
nicants was above sixty thousand : which showed not only 
the happy result of the labours of the missionaries, but also 
the enormous fatigues they underwent. F. Podgorski, though 
so suffering, preached four times a day and from the pulpit 
went straight into the confessional. 

F. Clement writing on the 22 nd of Sept. 1815 to the Pro- 
curator General in Rome says : "One of the Fathers whom 
I left behind me in Poland, is now acting as Parish Priest 
in the Church of St. Nicolas, in the Diocese of Lublin. This 
church is under the patronage of a certain noble lady, who 
is very favorable to us and she has contrived to have another 



278 Reestablishment of the Congregation in Poland. 

Father settled close by. For this reason, I beg of your Rever- 
ence to obtain for this church the same indulgences as are 
attached to that of our Congregation in Rome. When order 
shall have been reestablished in Poland, I trust that this 
church may become, in time, the new centre of our Con- 
gregation. Hence these indulgences would be most useful 
to the people and of great advantage to ourselves." 

Count Choloniewsky, who, in 1816 — 1817 had made ac- 
quaintance with F. Clement in Vienna, was most anxious 
for the foundation of a House of the Congregation in Podo- 
lia, where he had a large property. And Zacchary Werner 
was consequently sent by Father Clement and lived for a 
year on a farm of the Count's; during which time he was 
nominated Canon of Kaminiek. On this subject, Countess 
Mary Cecilia Choloniewska (afterwards a Salesian Sister) 
writes as follows : 

"In the years 1818 and 1819 certain members of my family 
had agreed with Father Clement to found a House of the 
Congregation in Podolia. This proposal was so dear to F. 
Clement's heart that he resolved to come in person to see 
the place and obtain the desired foundation. All, at first, 
went well : when quite unexpectedly, the Russian Govern- 
ment raised some difficulties, which ended by becoming in- 
surmountable. A 1000 pretexts were found to prevent Father 
Clement's journey; and letters backwards and forwards took 
up much precious time and advanced nothing. All this time, 
however, F. Clement was imploring us to persevere and not 
to despair, declaring he would be ready at any moment to 
undertake the journey. But God destined him to take a far 
longer one : for his death happened soon after and with him 
all hope of a successful result to the negotiations vanished. 
There must be many letters of Father Clement's in Podolia : 
but no one can tell where they are to be found. The bar- 
barous fury with which we were driven from our monastery 
at Kaminiek prevented our being able to take any single- 



Life and Death of F. Podgorski. 279 

thing away with us. We were obliged to go away on our 
two feet and to leave every article behind us, with the pro- 
hibition of ever returning again to Russia." 

The wise and pious Bulinski , Bishop of the Cathedral of 
Sandomir and author of a famous Ecclesiastical History, re- 
lates that a little later (possibly in 1820) a certain Count 
Tarnowski had obtained faculties to open a house of the 
Congregation at Piotzkowice, one of his properties in the 
neighbourhood of Kielce. Father Podgorski was named Su- 
perior with the permission to accept novices, several of 
whom came and were afterwards sent to finish their studies 
with the Lazarists at Warsaw. The Redemptorists hastened 
to restore the church, to enlarge the house and to establish 
a school; hoping the Congregation was now again firmly 
rooted in Poland. The Bishop of Cracow, Woronicz, was, in 
truth, a devoted friend of the Redemptorists. But the ene- 
mies of the Church were their enemies also : and at last ob- 
tained from the Grand Duke Constantine, Viceroy of Po- 
land, a new decree suppressing the Community. Once more 
were the poor Fathers compelled to disperse, while many of 
their students entered the Seminary at Kielce and were 
ordained priests. In the year 1876, two of these men were 
still living. 

F. Podgorski was recalled to Vienna and there lived many 
years in the new house of the Congregation at Sta. Maria 
della Scala. After a time, however, filled with fresh hope 
and having always, like Father Clement, the welfare of Po- 
land at heart, he obtained leave from F. Passerat, then Vicar 
General, to return to that unhappy country. The new and 
zealous Bishop of Cracow, Monsg. Skorkowski, had set his 
heart on giving the Redemptorists a house in Cracow or in 
its vicinity: but the enemies of the Church were again on 
the alert and prevented the execution of his plan. How- 
ever, to get as much advantage as possible out of F. Pod- 
gorski' s apostolic zeal, the Bishop took him with him in all 



280 Life and Death of F. Podgorski. 

his pastoral visits ; and the good Father thus preached every- 
where with incredible success. 

Between the years 1833 and 1839, he gave continual mis- 
sions; especially one in a church of the Cistercians in Mo- 
gita, where more than 25 priests went to confession and 
upwards of eighteen thousand persons received Holy Com- 
munion: and another in the church of the Premonstra- 
tensians in Zwierzynice, where Gregory XVI. having sanc- 
tioned the beatification of the Sister of St. Hyacinth (Bro- 
nislava, Premonstratensian) a great function was held in the 
church attended by an extraordinary number of people from 
Gallicia, Russian Poland, Hungary and Silesia. It is need- 
less to say that F. Podgorski was as indefatigable on that 
occasion in the pulpit as in the confessional. 

When in 1844, the last Premonstratensian died who had 
administered a parish of 6000 souls in addition to the care 
of the monastery, the nuns gave Father Podgorski no peace 
till he had accepted the vacant cure. But the good Fathers 
course was nearly run. Weakened by his tremendous fati- 
gues and incessant toils he expired in March 1847 and was 
buried in that church. For over 50 years he had laboured 
incessantly for souls and not until the day of judgment will 
be known the number of those he saved! He lived in great 
poverty with one lay-brother and spent all his money in the 
relief of the poor and the adornment of his church, in which 
he would spend whole nights in prayer. He had an extra- 
ordinary gift of preaching and even when he was almost 
dying, he would go into the pulpit, where he seemed to ac- 
quire a new life. His style was simple and popular; he was 
intimately acquainted with the Polish language and was 
wonderfully clear in his explanations of the Catechism. May 
it please God to raise up for Poland men like unto him and 
his great master F. Clement, so that Religion may once more 
nourish in that unhappy land! At this moment there is but 



A new Persecution. 28 1 

one Polish Father of the Congregation in Cracow, from whom 
we have had most of the details given above. 



CHAPTER XXII. 

A NEW PERSECUTION IS STARTED AT VIENNA AGAINST FATHER 

Clement. Francis I. shows himself to be favourable to 

HIS CAUSE. 

TO a man like Father Clement, chosen by Divine Pro- 
vidence to revive religion in Vienna and fight against the 
perverse spirit of the times, persecution could not be want- 
ing. At first, as we have seen, he was placed under the sur- 
veillance of the police. And when, later on, his authority 
increased and his apostolic labours had produced such 
astounding fruit, his words and actions were continually 
watched in order if possible to find some shadow of' crime 
in them as regarded the laws of the state. By such persons 
F. Clement was looked upon as a fanatic ; a tool of Rome, 
who was endeavouring to upset the Imperial rescripts and 
promote superstition among the people. Josephism in certain 
quarters was still rampant : and every eifort was consequent- 
ly made to stop the mouth of so inconvenient a preacher. 
To arrive at this it was necessary, if possible, to add eccle- 
siastical to civil authority. And so, in 1816, F. Clement was 
through the machinations of the Police, summoned before 
the Archepiscopal Tribunal to give an account of his pro- 
ceedings. 

The Archbishop of Vienna , Count Hohenwart, although 
a personal friend of F. Clement's", was very old and so had 
not the courage to resist the pressure put upon him and thus 
authorised this inquisition, although he insisted upon being 
present himself to protect the servant of God. 

The day appointed came : and Father Clement appeared, 
without knowing the object of the enquiry or in what Avay 



282 A new Persecution is started 

he was considered guilty. He was received with such in- 
civility that not even a chair was offered him; and he was 
treated in fact, as a criminal at the bar, standing before his 
judges, who asked him insolently: "Who he was?" "Where 
he came from?" "Where he was born?" "What business he 
had in Vienna?" and even, "to what religion he belonged?" 

Father Clement looked at his questioners with amaze- 
ment , and at last not seing to what lengths they meant to 
go, quietly answered: "It is evidently not a right thing for me to 
stag here" and bowing to his judges, withdrew. 

These men, very much amazed at his holy frankness and 
simplicity, looked at one another not knowing what to do 
next: but the Archbishop who was delighted at F. Clement's 
departure, turned to them and said : "F. Clement has acted 
like the Apostles and shaken the dust off his feet before 
leaving you ! " and so closed the Court. His enemies, how- 
ever, hoped that what they could not obtain from eccle- 
siastical authority, they would from a civil one ; and so ad- 
dressed themselves to Count von Saurau, Aulic Chancellor 
for the Kingdoms of Bohemia and Moravia , to whom they 
represented Father Clement as a Roman spy, who reported 
everything to the Vatican and whom it was necessary to 
exile as being dangerous for the peace of the monarchy. 
These calumnies had much weight with Count Saurau, who 
was an ardent Josephist. 

But the good sense of the Emperor Francis I. detected 
the infamous plot and when it was proposed to him to exile 
F. Clement replied: "This I certainly shall not do: for he 
is one of my own subjects." 

Having again failed in this quarter, Father Clement's 
enemies resorted to menaces to compel him to abandon his 
country voluntarily : and a pretext was not wanting. Father 
Sabelli had obtained permission from his superior to be 
transferred to Rome. But the Nunzio, Mongr. Leardi, who 
knew the state of things in Austria, thought that such a 






at Vienna against F. Clement. 283 

step was an imprudent one and wrote to Rome saying that 
F. Clement was most willing to let him go ; but that Rome 
must consider how great was the distrust of the Holy See 
felt by the Austrian Government : and that they would only 
give Italian passports with great difficulty. He therefore 
advised F. Sabelli's being sent to Switzerland instead. It 
was consequently settled that F. Sabelli should start for 
Valsanta and he presented himself accordingly to the 
Police to obtain his passport. Interrogated by them with 
malicious astuteness as to the object of his journey, he an- 
swered in the sense that he and F. Clement belonged to a 
Religious Congregation, which was not recognised in 
Austria; and that they depended on a Foreign Superior. 

This was a crime against the Josephin laws and was 
enough to subject Father Clement to a severe enquiry. Con- 
sequently on the 29 th of January, a certain ex-friar named 
Braig, councillor for Ecclesiastical Affairs and Vice-Director 
of studies, appeared at his house, accompanied by a man 
named Kaufmann , Professor of Roman Law at the There- 
sian Academy and by a Secretary and servant. Father Cle- 
ment was in the church and these men waited till he came 
back to his house. Then having turned out Professor Mad- 
lener and put the chain on the door, they commenced an 
interrogatory of the holy man, which lasted for three mortal 
hours: and examined every paper, letter, book, cupboard 
and trunk in his rooms without, however, being able to 
find a single thing which could tell against him. 

They obtained, however, in another way, what they most 
desired : for, insisting on an answer to the question : "whether 
he were a member of the Redemptorist order?*' he replied 
in the affirmative : and also as to "whether he did not obey 
a Foreign Superior?" And as they then informed him that 
he must either, renounce his Congregation or leave Austria, 
he answered frankly that "he had never broken his vows 
and that he would sooner leave his country". Being then 



284 A new Persecution is started 

asked "where he would go to?", he replied: "To Ame- 
rica, only give me time till the spring and do not compel 
me to make such a journey in the cold mid-winter". The 
Commissioners enchanted at what they thought the success 
of their plot, drew up a paper in which they stated that 
"F. Clement had declared his wish to go to America and 
begging the Emperor to give him permission to do so". 
This paper they forced F. Clement to sign and even to add 
his seal. Then Braig insolently exclaimed: "Now all is 
done. We have everything in order." 

"No," replied F. Clement quickly, "all is not done." "What 
is wanting f angrily answered the ex-Friar. xAnd F. Cle- 
ment lifting his hands to Heaven said gravely: "The last 
judgement." 

The whole of this affair was nothing but a shameful in- 
trigue, contrary to law and a usurpation of authority worthy 
of the severest chastisement. For this interrogatory was 
never authorised by any ecclesiastical authority, nor even 
by the Police, not a single member of which was present. 
But F. Clement, -at the time, did not perceive the deception 
which had been practised nor the real nature of the inqui- 
sition, God wishing thus to prove the fidelity of His faith- 
ful servant; this trial eventually redounding only to his 
greater honour and glory. 

As soon as these impious men had left the house, F. Cle- 
ment summoned his disciples, as usual , for their examina- 
tion of conscience. He was pale and evidently much moved; 
but he did not say a word and served them at dinner as 
usual. But whatever may have been his secret grief at thus 
seeing all his hopes destroyed of establishing his Congre- 
gation in Austria, he did not allow it to disturb his outward 
tranquillity or his peace of soul : and one who visited him 
in his room in the afternoon found him quietly humming 
a favourite hymn. 

From his appearance , therefore, no one knew what had 



at Vienna against F. Clement. 285 

happened, nor did he ever speak of it; but F. Madlener after 
his death heard the whole account from Baron Stift, the 
Emperor's physician. 

The first consequence of the interrogatory was the exile 
of F. Sabelli, who received his passport with an order to 
leave Vienna immediately and the Empire within three 
days; so that he started on the 19 th of Jan. 1819. 

The next thing to be thought of was the expulsion of 
Father Clement himself, who expected it from day to day, 
as he owned several times to the Ursulines. In that care, 
he had made up his mind to go to America with F. Pajalich, 
for whom he had a great affection. 

In the mean time, the paper was taken to the Emperor 
which pretended to prove that Father Clement desired to 
go to America and presented a petition to that effect. But the 
Emperor suspecting the quarter from which it came, replied : 
"If he really be anxious, of his own free will, to go to Ame- 
rica I will not oppose his wishes : but as a subject of my 
Empire nothing will ever induce me to expel him." 

In this way the enemies of F. Clement could not obtain 
what they wished : for God willed otherwise and Providence 
so disposed human events that the very means taken to ruin 
the work of His faithful servant contributed to consolidate 
and bring it to perfection. The news of the danger to which 
he was exposed came to the ears of the Archbishop, who 
was profoundly grieved at it and hasteued to the Emperor 
to make him understand the real state of the case and to 
implore him not to deprive the Archdiocese of the best priest 
they had. The Emperor was on the point of starting for 
Rome : but he gave orders that no one should dare attempt 
to molest F. Clement in his absence. 

Even such precise orders , however, did not prevent F. 
Clement's enemies from making another attempt with the 
Archduke Ranieri, who, in the absence of the Emperor, 
was Regent of the Kingdom and from whom they tried to 



286 The Emperor shoivs himself 

obtain an order for the expulsion of Father Clement from 
Austria. But they had reckoned without their host! for the 
Archduke indignantly replied: "I would that we had not 
one but six Father Clements in Vienna to amend the con- 
dition of religion in this City." 

The Nunzio, Mongr. Leardi, arrived in Rome before the 
Emperor and speedily informed Pius VII. of the state of 
ecclesiastical affairs in Vienna and of the persecution to 
which Father Clement was exposed on the plea of his being 
a spy of Rome. And although the Holy Father could not 
treat directly with the Emperor as to the position of the 
Church in Austria, because he had declared he would not 
speak of it in person, yet he found means to defend F. 
Clement and to dispose the Emperor favourably towards 
him. 

The thing happened in this way ; one day the Pope was 
having a familiar conversation with the Emperor, when he 
said, "with what great pleasure he had heard that there were 
some really zealous priests in Vienna and especially a man 
like Father Clement Hofbauer, who was a real apostle and 
an honour to the Clergy", and added: "F. Clement com- 
plains of us at Rome because he says we do not treat the 
Viennese properly and says that much more might be done 
with the Germans if we acted differently." 

These words sounded like a reproach to F. Clement ; but 
were in reality his defence with the Emperor, who was very 
much pleased to hear them and felt great annoyance at the 
way F. Clement had been treated. Directly after his au- 
dience, he repeated this conversation to his Confessor, Don 
Vincent Darnaut, and added : "If any one has dared to give 
any fresh annoyance to that good Father Clement I shall 
be seriously displeased. If I only knew how to make up to 
him for the insults he has already suffered !" 

His confessor, who was a great friend of Father Clement's, 
instantly replied : "All he wishes for is, to see his Congre- 



. 



to be favourable to his cause. 287 

gation legally founded in Austria. If your majesty would 
only grant this, his great desire, he would be supremely 
happy and contented." Directly after, that is, on the 26 th of 
April, the Emperor started for Naples , where , in the midst 
of the Fetes organised for him, he did not forget F. Cle- 
ment and wrote to Vienna to desire him to draw up the 
rules of his Congregation for his approval and also to men- 
tion under what conditions it could be introduced into 
Austria. It was impossible to describe the joy of F. Clement 
on the receipt of this Imperial order, seeing that the day 
had at last come for the fulfilment of his earnest desire ; and 
no words could express his gratitude to that Providence who 
had permitted his late persecution only to draw therefrom 
so great a good. 

Hence he set to work at once and in a carefully-drawn 
memorandum showed the end and object of the Congrega- 
tion. And as missions were prohibited in Austria and even 
the name was held in abhorrence, he merely said that the 
Congregation occupied itself chiefly in instructing the igno- 
rant and giving spiritual aid to those who needed it most, 
and so strove to be useful to both Church and State. Thus 
he described the scope of their missions without ever nam- 
ing them. 

When the Emperor returned from Italy, he sent for F. 
Clement and received him with marked favour, inviting him 
to ask him frankly for anything he wished. The holy man, 
without any hesitation said that the only favour he asked 
for was, that the Emperor would deign to allow the esta- 
blishment of the Congregation in his States and grant them 
the Church of St. Maria della Scala. This church , one of 
the finest in Vienna, had been used as a warehouse for hay : 
and although it had lately been cleared out and partially 
restored, it had not yet been reopened to the public, all its 
revenues having been seized. F. Clement offered to take it 
and officiate in it without any payment: and the Emperor 



288 F. Clemenfs ultimate Success. 

who thus saw himself spared from the necessity of making 
any endowment, granted it to him at once with evident 
pleasure. 

The memorial F. Clement had drawn up on the 29 t]l of 
Oct. 1819 together with the rule, was sent "by the Emperor 
to the Archbishop of Vienna, to the Parish priest of the 
Court, James Frint, and to his Physician and Councillor of 
state , Baron von Stift, so that they might examine it : and 
this was a fresh and signal grace ; because by thus avoiding 
the ordinary bureaucratic course, it escaped the hostile criti- 
cisms of his enemies and insured its ultimate success : for 
those three persons not only enjoyed the full confidence of 
the monarch, but were also the intimate personal friends of 
Father Clement. 

Thus that faithful servant of God was permitted at last 
to see the realisation of his hopes ; and it would seem as if 
he had now nothing to do but to gather the fruit he had 
sown and laboured for with the sweat of his brow. But God 
had decreed otherwise. Like Moses, who was destined to 
lead the people of Israel through the desert to the promised 
Land, in the very sight of which he slept in the Lord, 
without having been permitted to put his foot on it, so F. 
Clement, having led his Congregation through a thousand 
perils to the spot prepared for it by Providence , was not 
allowed to see the fruition of his labours, but passed to a 
better life before the final arrangements were made. And 
this he knew full well ; and entirely resigned to the Divine 
Will and full of the deepest humility, he said smiling to his 
intimates: "A great honour awaits me, so that now I shall 
die willingly." In fact, at the very hour when the much 
desired edict of approval was issued, God called him to 
himself. 

But before speaking of his blessed death , we must say 
some thing of the extraordinary gifts with which God honoured 
His faithful servant even in this life. 



Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 289 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

The extraordinary graces and miracees granted to Father 
Clement in his life-time. 

THERE is no doubt that to Father Clement were granted 
extraordinary powers which marked him out as a privileged 
soul in the Kingdom of God. The first great gift of this 
sort which he possessed was the power of reading the secrets 
oi men's hearts and knowing the state of their souls. We 
mentioned before several instances of this : how, with Mat- 
thew Widhalm, who had come to Warsaw to enter the Con- 
gregation, F. Clement knew sup ernatur ally the anguish of 
his soul before he had ever spoken to him, and how this 
anguish was dispelled by his simple presence. In the same 
way he detected the struggles or vocations of his penitents 
and the most hidden throughts of their hearts, without any 
explanation whatever from themselves or others. Sister 
Thaddeus, Dr. Veith and many others constantly bore witness 
to this fact and added that, for that very reason, any thing 
like insincerity or double-dealing was so insupportable to 
him : for through this gift of the Holy Spirit, he detected it 
at once. 

But let us mention one or two other facts to prove our 
assertion. 

One summer evening, he was walking with some of his 
disciples on the banks of a little river called the Vienna 
which runs through part of that city, when they passed by 
a man, who looked disturbed and anxious certainly, but who 
was quite unknown to them all. F. Clement looked at him 
earnestly and then quickly telling his companions to keep 
at a distance, he went up to him and with a kind and cour- 
teous salutation, offered him a pinch of snuff and asked 
him, ''why he looked so sad on such a lovely evening?" The 
loving words and manner of F. Clement so amazed this un- 



290 Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 

known individual , that he suddenly burst into tears and 
opening his heart, he at once confessed to him that he was 
going to commit suicide by throwing himself into the river. 
F. Clement quietly answering, "I knew it," began talking to 
him gently and persuasively and finally got the idea out of 
his head and induced him to bear his misfortunes patiently 
and finally to come to his house and make a general con- 
fession. 

On another occasion, when walking with F. Clement on 
the banks of the Danube, his companion was amazed at 
seeing the good Father suddenly leave him and run with 
all his might towards a woman who Avas walking quickly 
in an opposite direction, but who was unknown to them 
both. She turned out to be one of the unhappy victims of 
the reduction of the national debt and had lost upwards of 
80,000 florins, which was her whole fortune: so that from 
opulence, she was thus reduced to misery. She had been 
educated without any religious principles and so had no 
Strength to resist or bear misfortune and was determined 
to drown herself in the Danube. She was on the point of 
accomplishing her purpose when she heard a voice , almost 
breathless from running, exclaim : "Do not make away with 
your life! Do not throw away your soul!" It was the voice 
of F. Clement to whom her intention had been supernatur- 
ally revealed, and who came up just in time to stop her. 
Startled and amazed, the poor lady turned round : and was 
to touched at his words and manner, that she yielded to his 
persuasion and came home: soon after which, she retired 
to the Ursuline Convent and in spite of all the kind pro- 
posals of her family determined to remain there , under F. 
Clement's guidance, whom she considered her best bene- 
factor. 

But not only could F. Clement read hearts : he could also 
foresee with certainty future events. Sister Welschenau 
relates that during her noviciate, her health was so bad that 



Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 291 

she feared every day to be sent away. Mentioning this one 
evening to F. Clement, he replied: "You need not fear, you 
will be professed, you will get quite well and live far longer 
than others who now have rosy cheeks." And as the time 
of her profession drew near and she was worse instead of 
better, he added: 

"I can assure you you will be admitted to profession and 
when you are 28, you will become quite strong." Soon 
after, the Community met to decide upon her admission and 
unanimously resolved that she was too delicate to remain 
and must be sent away. When this decision was communi- 
cated to F. Clement, he replied: "You are all wrong, admit 
her to profession, for she will live to a good old age and 
render important service to the monastery." 

F. Clement spoke so decidedly that the nuns felt he must 
have some supernatural light in the matter and so admitted 
the Sister to profession. Everything happened as he had 
foretold. At 28, her health was entirely reestablished; and 
at 76 years old and the 52 nd of her religious profession, she 
related these occurrences exactly as we have written them 
down. 

A lady named Benedicta Rizy, who was governess in 
Count Gileis' family, had tried in vain to be admitted into 
various convents. This was a great grief to her and she 
opened her heart to F. Clement one day, who listened at- 
tentively to her story and then said: "Be consoled, after 
some years you will be admitted into a Convent and your 
age will not be considered an objection." And so it hap- 
pened: for when the Redemptorist nuns came to Vienna, 
she applied to them and was at once accepted: and after- 
wards became Superior of their monastery at Stein. 

The Superior of the Ursulines, mother Ursula, was taken 
seriously ill and vomited so much blood that every one 
thought her end was at hand. But F. Clement reassured the 
Sisters, exhorted them to pray, gave them leave for an extra. 



292 Extraordinary Poivers granted to F. Clement. 

Communion and offered up Holy Mass himself for her : after 
which he said : "The mother Superior will soon he well." In 
fact, having heen for a long time delirious, she suddenly 
recovered and after a fortinght was able to return to the re- 
fectory like the rest. She remained Superior for another 15 
years enjoying perfect health ; which was the more marvel- 
lous as before that time she had always suffered from her 
lungs. 

"One morning", (Dr. Veith relates) "Father Clement went 
to the house of his friend Klinkowstrom and found them all 
in great trouble, because their baby boy, Alphonsus, who 
was hardly a year old, was lying with his eyes closed and 
his legs already cold, apparently dying in the arms of his 
weeping mother. But F. Clement playfully patting the little 
fellow on the cheek said: "It is nothing: this evening you 
will see he will be hungry and eat a good supper." And so 
it happened. The child recovered at once, grew up strong 
and well and became afterwards an Aulic Councillor." 

F. Clement prophesied several things regarding the Con- 
gregation and especially with regard to its establishment in 
Vienna after his death. "He often said", wrote one of his 
disciples, "that the Congregation would soon be founded in 
Vienna even when it seemed the least likely thing that could 
happen." And when we began rejoicing over it, he damped 
our joy, by adding: "This will not happen during my life; 
but directly after my death." 

"I remember", wrote F. Veith, "that one day when we 
were speaking of this matter, F. Clement said : "As long as 
I live, nothing will be done : but after my death many houses 
will be founded," and so saying, he turned round on one 
foot as if to pretend he had spoken like a fool, which he 
often did when he perceived that any one had been struck 
at what he said ; so as to cancel any admiration of his words 
by doing something whicli would seem foolish." 

One of the Ursulines bore a like testimony. F. Clement 



Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 293 

often said to them : "First I must die : and then the Congre- 
gation will spread. I shall be able to do more for my sons 
before God than I can do here," and again: "The admission 
of the Congregation into the Austrian States will not be 
signed by His Majesty till after my death when I shall be 
with God." He frequently prophesied, likewise, as to the 
entrance of certain men into the Congregation. 

Sebastian Kiesel, who was a medical student and had no 
idea of becoming a priest, and John Madlener are instances 
of this. The latter, one day, was in great anxiety as to his 
salvation and F. Clement said to him : "You will become a 
Redemptorist and your eternal safety will thus be secured, " 
words which filled Madlener with joy and consolation. 

Canon Veith also relates the following : 

"When I was studying Theology F. Clement said to me 
one day: 'As a preacher you will have great success: but I 
fear for your pride.' These words struck me as more than 
ordinarily true: and proved his really supernatural saga- 
city." 

Among his great gifts F. Clement possessed another which 
was that of Science. We have already shewn how little he 
had acquired this from men or from schools. Yet his words 
carried weight with the most learned among his cotempora- 
ries and no one could resist the wisdom with which he spoke 
or deny the justice of his decisious. Hence the extraordinary 
effect produced by his sermons, in which he seemed to be 
visibly assisted by the Holy Spirit. The kind of halo of light 
which often surrounded him and lit up his whole counte- 
nance was only a reflection of that inward light and know- 
ledge with which his mind was illuminated. One of the wit- 
nesses for his beatification deposed on oath : "I saw him one 
day after his sermon go up to the altar and he seemed to me 
positively on fire with the love of God. The expression of 
his face and the light in his eyes were quite supernatural. 
I could not take my eyes off him ; and even now, when I go 



294 Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 

into that church, I always remember the emotion I felt at 
that moment." 

The painter Philip Veit coming one day accidentally into 
the Ursuline Church saw F. Clement surrounded with light : 
and Dr. Emanuel Veith adds : " It was impossible not to be 
struck with F. Clement's face especially at the altar; a cer- 
tain light which I never saw on any other countenance 
beamed from his eyes and lit up his whole face so that one 
could not help watching it." And the same testimony is 
given by Louisa Xavier von Pilat on the occasion of a pil- 
grimage to the Sanctuary of Maria Zell, when he was wrapt 
in an ecstasy and "an extraordinary light was seen [round 
his head." There is no doubt also that he was favoured with 
visions of our Lady and the Saints although he would never 
speak of them. One morning however, a man was kneeling 
near F. Clement's confessional, when to his astonishment, 
he saw a long procession of virgins dressed in white and 
bearing garlands of flowers, who offered them in passing to 
F. Clement in his confessional, to whom he, bowing his head 
answered aloud : "I come I I come I " The good man was so 
amazed that he went straight into the confessional and asked 
him what in the world it meant? F. Clement seemed much 
troubled at his having seen the vision also and said quickly: 
"Hold your tongue and do not mention it to any one." This 
was a very short time before his death and was evidently a 
celestial vision calling him home. 

But we must speak now of his gift of miracles. Sister 
Louisa, one of the Ursulines, had a cancer in the breast 
which caused her great anguish. One night not being able 
to bear the pain, she got up and lent on the shoulder of 
the infirmarian, Sister Cordelia, and did this for so long that 
the poor Sister caught the disease and an inflammation set 
in with intense pain from the shoulder to the chest. After 
mass, the Infirmarian went to F. Clement and told him what 
had happened. He consoled and blessed her and told her to 



Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 295 

go before the Blessed Sacrament and repeat the "Magnificat" 
three times ; after which she would be quite cured. And it hap- 
pened exactly as he had said. Another Ursuline, Sister Ca- 
therine, fell down the stairs one day and was taken up with- 
out consciousness and carried to the infirmary where F. 
Clement was sent for and found all the nuns crying and 
preparing everything for giving her extreme unction, the 
Doctor thinking there was no hope. But F. Clement, put- 
ting his hand on her head, blessed her and said to the Sisters 
round her : "Do not be unhappy. Very soon she will be per- 
fectly well and will go back to take her place in the Choir." 
"Which happened as he had foretold; so that she celebrated 
the 50 th universary of her religious profession and did not 
die till 1864. 

Many such instances might be given : but we will pass on 
to another kind of miracle which was common to him : and 
which was, the multiplication of food. 

This excited the amazement of all around him, who, at 
first, were so perplexed that they could not understand it: 
although by degrees they became convinced of the reality 
of the miracle. Thus, John de Passy, having often heard 
people talk of it who attended those suppers given to the 
young men of which we have already spoken, determined 
one day to verify the fact and took a seat next to him.. They 
sat down a very large party and F. Clement took up a loaf 
weighing about 3 lbs. and divided it into 1 6 portions, leav- 
ing only a small bit for himself. Later on, he asked this 
one and that "if he would not have some more ?" And if the 
answer were in the affirmative, he would cut another large 
piece from his own portion, doing it again and again, with- 
out the smallest apparent diminution of tho loaf in question: 
and he did this so naturally that unless you watched him 
you had not an idea of it. 

In the same way, John Sibert bore witness that with soup, 
or any other dish, he would distribute such a quantity as the 



296 Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 

tureen or plate could not possibly have held. He himself 
came in late one day and received this supernatural food 
which he said had a most exquisite taste : but if any one were 
disposed to make a remark on the subject, F. Clement would 
begin talking on some very interesting matter so as effectu- 
ally to divert their attention. Canon Unkhrechtsberg nar- 
rates that F. Clement always had something good in his 
cupboard for unexpected guests, which had been given him 
by the nuns or other people : and that every time any one 
came in, he would get up and offer them something from these 
mysterious stores. When others went to look, the dishes 
would be found empty : but F. Clement laughingly saying : 
"O! you don't know where I keep my treasures," would go to 
the self-same larder and bring out enough for all his guests. 
But we will mention one more fact, deposed by one of the 
Sisters, Frances Plaschka, which we will relate in her own 
words. 

W I was still a Protestant when I was sent one Friday to 
F. Sabelli, who lived with Father Clement, to give him a 
message. It was their dinner hour: and F. Clement asked 
me to stay and join them, which astonished me very much 
as he never had women to dinner. Moreover, I had just come 
out of the kitchen and I knew that only enough food had 
been sent up for two persons, or, at most, three. In conse- 
quence of this, I thanked him, but excused myself, saying 
I could not stay. And I had all the more reason to say so 
when I looked round and perceived there were already six 
people sitting down to dinner and I felt there would not be 
half enough food for them all. But he would not listen to 
my excuses and insisted on my sitting down to the table 
with the rest. Then F. Sabelli made a sign to me to watch 
what Father Clement would do. He accordingly, having 
blessed the food, dispensed equal portions to each of his 
guests and gave so much to each that they were more than 
satisfied. In the plate before him were two little fish, which 



Extraordinary Powers granted to F. Clement. 297 

I knew were all that had been sent from the kitchen : he did 
not divide them but gave to each person a whole fish. To 
my utter amazement as I went on looking, I saw him dis- 
tribute also other maigre food from dishes which appeared to 
me entirely empty and he helped out to each a great deal 
more than the dishes could possibly hold. These was a 
bottle of red wine also before F. Clement: he filled every 
one's glass and when it came to my turn, I begged him not 
to give me any, 'but he said I must have a little. When I 
looked at the bottle it was more than half full, although he 
had helped us all : and certainly there was only that one 
bottle on the table." 

We should only weary our readers by further details of 
the like nature and will only conclude this chapter with a 
letter written by Countess Zichy (in 18G5) shortly before her 
death, to the Holy Father Pius IX. In this letter she first 
begins by saying "how she and her Sister often went to his 
house to enquire after him : and on several occasions they 
saw the distribution of the food to the students from the 
very small portions sent to him by the Ursulines; and yet 
everyone had more than enough.*' Sometimes the men would 
come late and to F. Clement's enquiry as to "whether they 
had dined?" the answer was invariably : "No". Then F. Cle- 
ment would simply say to F. Stark : "Give me some more 
plates," and he would then proceed to fill them with food 
from dishes which to our human eyes appeared to be per- 
fectly empty. In that way he multiplied the food according 
to the needs of each; but amazed as we all were, no one dared 
make a remark to him about it." 



298 He begins to be seriously ill 1S20. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

He begins to be seriously ill, but still continues his 
Apostolic labours. 

[1820.] 

ALTHOUGH Father Clement had a strong constitution, 
yet the incredible fatigues he had undergone and especially 
the long journies he had made on foot in spite of rain and 
snow, or under the burning rays of the sun, and often pass- 
ing the nights in the open air, had seriously told upon his 
health. Add to this, the long sittings in the confessional, the 
patchings at night by the bedsides of the sick and dying, 
and his advanced age, and we shall not be surprised at the 
exhaustion of his physical powers. For a long time in Vienna 
he had suffered from rheumatic pains which obliged him to 
use the Baden waters. He had also constant bad sore throats 
from his trying his voice too much : and finally he suffered 
a martyrdom from emeroids. especially as Dr. Veith, his 
Doctor and also his disciple, attests , during the last winter 
of his life. Twice he had a violent attack of fever his pulse 
going up to 150: but it was most edifying to hear him even 
in his delirium quoting passages from Holy Scripture, and 
from the Fathers, proving how such thoughts were engraved 
as it were, in his mind, to the exclusion of all others. And 
when the Doctors to stop these violent attacks of fever gave 
him very large doses of quinine, he submitted without a 
word, although he knew that in other ways this remedy was 
very prejudicial to him. 

In spite of all these complicated maladies. Father Cle- 
ment never relaxed his labours in the pulpit, in the con- 
fessional or by the bedside of the sick. In February 1820 
the only person who could help him in his work, F. Stark, 
fell dangerously ill, and F. Clement instantly became his 



He begins to be seriously ill. 1820. 299 

infirmarian and although, when he administered to him 
the sacraments, he said : "I am more ill than he is" : still he 
continued his devoted services hy his sick-bed and would 
not give up the nursing to any one else. Sister Thaddeus 
told him one day at that time: "That they were going to 
make a novena to our Lady of Dolours that F. Stark might 
recover" : and he answered at once : "Do so, but Stark will re- 
cover, and 1 shall die" And when the poor Sister replied: "O! 
we will pray even more earnestly that your Reverence may 
have a long life and recover your health," F. Clement ad- 
ded : "Not our will be done, but the Will of God in Heaven as in 
earth" Sister Thaddeus replied : "The death of your Rever- 
ence would be the greatest possible misfortune to us all!" 
but F. Clement said quickly : "Sin is the only real misfortune." 1 

Up till the day he went to bed, he continued to hear the 
confessions of the Ursulines, although it was a great fatigue 
to him. Sister Welschenau seeing this, expressed her sorrow 
at giving him this trouble. But F. Clement replied : " You 
must not think of that. It is only the pain whichA prevents my sitt- 
ing" But to reassure her, he forced himself to sit for a little 
time. Then the sister begged him not to detain her long by 
speaking to her in the confessional : but he would not listen 
to her request and not only listened with his usual patience 
to what she had to say, but even kept her longer than usual 
in order to console her. 

On the 4 th of March, after having heard the confessions 
of several of his penitents in his house , he was seized with 
strong shivering fits and fever: but nevertheless he insisted 
on the reading going on as usual during dinner and con- 
soled his disciples with his usual interesting conversation 
afterwards. The freshness of his mind did not seem at all 
impaired: and he proposed various difficulties and solved 
them as usual. Among the rest, that evening he asked: 
"Why. under the old law, fishes were never offered up in 
sacrifice?" And as no one answered, he replied: Because 



300 He bee/ins to be seriously ill. 1S20. 

fishes have no voices wherewith to sing the praises of God." 
And then he went on to exhort them specially to praise God 
and to join in the public prayers of the Church, declaring 
that to him it was the greatest possible consolation to be 
able to sing with the people in church. But as the evening 
wore on, his weakness and the evident pain he was suffer- 
ing were patent to all and his disciples wanted to go away 
earlier so that he might rest. But this he would not allow 
exclaiming : " What does it signify if I go to bed a little sooner or 
a little later?' 1 '' 

The next day, that is the 5 th of March, being the third 
Sunday in Lent, F. Clement preached for the last time and 
spoke of the rigid account which every one would have to 
render to God of his thoughts, words, and actions, and of 
the good or bad use he had made of the graces received. 
And alluding to the account he himself would have to give 
very soon to our Lord, he exclaimed with the deepest hu- 
mility : "0/ if in the whole course of my life, I had only corresponded 
faithfully to the graces 1 have received, ivhat great good God would 
have done through my means l" 

It was with these words that F. Clement took leave of 
his hearers. This truly grand and apostolic man, forget- 
ting all the good he had done, after having finished his 
course and corresponded so faithfully to the designs of Di- 
vine Providence, remembered nothing but the Evangelical 
Counsel and publickly declared himself an unprofitable ser- 
vant ! 

In the mean time, his illness went on increasing and the 
medical men could no longer conceal their anxiety as to 
the result. Any one else would have considered that it was 
a duty to rest and obtain some relief from his increasing 
sufferings by remaining in bed. But instead of that, F. Cle- 
ment would continue his work on behalf of his neighbours, 
until the violence of his illness utterly prostrated him. Ac- 
cordingly very early in the morning, in an intense cold, he 



The precious Death of F. Clement. 1820. 301 

dragged himself to the church of the Mechitarists to hear 
the confessions of his poor : and then returned to hear those 
of the Ursulines. But the long sitting and the severe season, 
increased his terrible sufferings. On the 8 th of March he 
said his last mass to those Sisters and then went into his 
confessional : but after an hour and a half, was forced to 
leave it from the violence of the pain. Before leaving the 
church, however, he sent for Sister Thaddeus and said to 
her: "Pray hard for me, for I feel very, very ill." The poor 
Sister added : "After these words, he left the monastery never 
to set foot in it again. I was quite heart-broken with sorrow 
when he looked at me (as I felt) for the very last time. 

I cried my heart out, thinking what I should do when I 
could never see him more. 

His words were the last Farewell I had on this earth. 
At that moment I felt and saw he was sick unto death ; and 
the greater was my sorrow and desolation : although he had 
told me a month before that he should soon die." 



CHAPTER XXV. 

The precious Death of Father Clement. 

[1820.1 

IN spite of the serious nature of his illness and the acute- 
ness of his sufferings, Father Clement insisted on going to 
the Italian Church on the 9 th of March to sing a solemn 
Requiem mass for the repose of the soul of the Princess 
Jablonowska who had lately died at Rome. As she had been 
a great benefactress to the Congregation in Poland, he 
wished thus to show his gratitude ; and all the more because 
her son, who lived in Vienna, had asked him to do so. He 
accordingly went there on foot with F. Pajalich: but it was 
as stormy day and the snow, which was already deep, con- 



302 The precious Death of F. Clement. 1820. 

tinued falling. At the beginning of the mass , at which F. 
Pajalich assisted as Deacon and Madlener as Subdeacon 
everything went well : but at the commencement of the Ca- 
non, he was seized with such a faintness and became so 
deadly pale that it was feared he would never be able to 
finish the Holy Sacrifice. But God gave him temporary 
strength and he succeeded in going on to the end. When 
he got into the sacristy and was taking off his vestments, he 
received the young Princess Jablonowska who came to 
thank him for his great kindness and also to express her 
sorrow at the suffering it had cost him. In the mean time, 
Baron Penkler offered him his carriage, which he accepted 
with thanks, although the motion increased his suffering 
from the emorroids. The two priests, Pajalich and Madle- 
ner, went with him and also Herr Kraus, who accompanied 
him home. 

Whilst Pajalich was helping him to undress he said: "I 
hope my dream will not come true !" a few days before , he 
had dreamt that he was crying over the death of F. Clement. 

Soon after they had got him into bed Dr. Veith arrived, 
who instantly saw the danger of his patient : but he did not 
say a word to any one, so that those around him thought 
he might recover. They could not believe he would die till 
everything was settled for the Foundation of the Congrega- 
tion in Austria, for which his personal presence and influence 
were, they thought, so necessary to its accomplishment. 
When they saw, however, how seriously ill he was, they 
determined to remove F. Stark lest the sight of the sufferings 
of his beloved Father should bring on a return of his illness: 
and Count Szechenyi had the kindness to receive him in his 
palace. 

Every medical care was given to F. Clement, who sub- 
mitted to the treatment with the docility of a child. He 
was ordered warm baths and obeyed, only begging F. Paja- 
lich to read him a devout book in the mean while. As he 



The precious Death of F. Clement. 1820. 303 

had no laybrother in the house nor any skilled innrmarian, 
he had to be content with the services of his disciples, who, 
however, vied with one another in their care of the sick 
man: especially a rich and noble Hungarian, Louis von 
Grachenfels, who looked upon F. Clement as a real Father 
and served him with the love of the tender est son. 

We have often compared F. Clement with St. Philip 
Neri ; and if they were alike in their lives, still more were 
they so on their death-beds. Like the holy Apostle of Rome 
F. Clement, in the midst of his sufferings, never ceased con- 
soling and instructing his penitents, giving them wise coun- 
sels as to the choice of a future Confessor, and hearing their 
confessions even when he was in his last extremity. 

He did not have many visitors during those few last days, 
partly because people were afraid of disturbing him : partly, 
because no one expected he would die so soon. During his 
short illness, F. Clement spoke little and only of edifying 
things: but continually repeated ejaculatory prayers. Herr 
Kraus having one day expressed his sorrow at seeing him 
in such a state, F. Clement answered at once: "That which 
God wills, as God ivills and when God ivills, 1 ivill!" 

F. Rinn who often saw him in that last illness attests: 
"That F. Clement bore the most excruciating pain with the 
utmost patience and quietness : that he was always praying : 
and always uniting his will to the will of God." Dr. Veith 
adds: "That the last two days, he hardly spoke at all: but 
seemed quite separated from the world and engrossed in 
contemplation." 

To relieve his sufferings the first few days he used to ask 
to change his position: but F. Madlener having said to him: 
"My Father, for the love of Jesus, try and be quiet": he 
answered directly: "Yes, yes," and joining his hands in 
prayer, remained without scarcely moving till he died. 

He would not have even the alleviations to his state per- 
mitted by the rule of his Congregation and would die as a 



304 The precious Death of F . Clement. 1820. 

poor Religious on a straw mattrass. Even in the height of 
his sufferings he never thought of himself, but like our Lord 
on the Cross, only strove to procure some comfort for his 
faithful disciples. 

Two days before his death, having had a letter from F. 
Petrak , he rose in his bed to try and find a picture of St. 
Alphonsus and desired it might be sent to him. 

On another occasion when Madlener was standing beside 
his bed, he took his hand and pressing it to his heart said : 
"My dear Madlener! Many secrets will be buried with me in my 
grave. I would tell you some of them : but you do not hioiv how to 
be silent." 

In the mean time, great was the anguish of the poor Ur- 
suline nuns at the thought of losing their venerated guide 
and Confessor. Even when the news sent them on the 12 th 
was a little more favourable, sister Thaddeus did not believe 
in the good tidings and was always in tears. When asked 
"why?" she replied : "Because I know he will die very soon, 
for he told me so himself a few weeks ago." 

In fact, on the Monday, the illness increased so rapidly 
that there was no longer any hope. The Ursulines sent their 
servant, Marianne, to see how he was and when she per- 
ceived death on his face, she only burst out crying. But 
the holy man hastened to console her. "Marianne, do not cry?" 
he exclaimed. "/ am going home, and very soon you will be zvith 
me." She was a great strong girl and had no sign of illness 
about her, but eight days later, she was herself a corpse. 

On the evening of Monday, gangrene set in, and Madle- 
ner asked him if he would receive his Lord? F. Clement 
murmured: "Holy Communion? 0! yes! yes." They hastened 
to fetch his Confessor, Dom. Francis Schmidt, who heard his 
confession and brought him the viaticum, which he received 
with the most profound devotion, after which they gave 
him the last Sacraments. During the whole time, he re- 
mained with his hands clasped in fervent prayer. 



The precious Death of F. Clement. 1820. 305 

The next morning, Tuesday, his agony began and lasted 
for more than 24 hours. That very morning, Anna Biringer 
had gone to F. Clement's house to have news of him and 
on returning to her home, wanted to tell her nurse about 
him. But she interrupted her and said : r T know more about 
him than you can tell me, he is certainly dying. He has 
been here and told me many things." And she went on to say 
that that very morning at 6 o'clock F. Clement appeared 
to her, as usual, kind and gentle: and sitting on a stool 
near her bed, began talking to her on an affair regarding a 
pension she was to receive from the Emperor. And she 
having answered that it was all settled, he had spoken of 
the sad state of religion and how Faith had disappeared 
from the hearts of the upper classes and the officials , and 
then having given her some holy advice, he repeated to her 
three times : K I am going into my solitude ", and then disap- 
peared. This vision consoled the poor Lady and tempered 
the sorrow she had felt at the thought of her Confessor's 
death. And as she had been a great benefactor to him in 
life, so she felt that by this apparition he wished to reward 
her. 

To return to our dying saint. Towards mid-day on Wed- 
nesday, the 1 5 th of March, many of his friends were gathered 
together in his room foreseeing his approaching end and 
wishing to be witnesses of his holy death. Among these, 
besides his Confessor, were Herr Zangerle, Dr. Veith, Don 
Madlener, Don Pajalich, John Springer, the servant Ma- 
rianne and others. xAll were in admiration at the extra- 
ordinary patience with which he bore his sufferings and at 
his recollection, in God. 

In the mean time, 12 o'clock struck and those who were 
gathered round his bed were so intently watching and pray- 
ing for him that they did not notice the bell for the "Ange- 
lus". But the faithful servant of the Mother of God heard it 
and gathering up all his strength for a last supreme effort 

20 



306 The precious Death of F. Clement. 1S20. 

said to them: "Say the ' AngelusV do you not hear the bell?" They 
were his last words. All knelt instantly to say it and when 
they rose they saw that F. Clement had turned his head on 
the other side. On looking closer they found that at that 
very moment he had breathed out his last sigh in the hands 
of Jesus and Mary. They burst into tears, but could not take 
their eyes off a face which inspired all beholders with such 
a feeling of holiness and peace. We believe that it was not 
by accident that F. Clement's death occurred at that moment 
but that it was as a reward for his peculiar devotion to the 
ineffable mystery of the Incarnation : a devotion, which by 
word and example he was always trying to infuse into others 
and which he suggested at the very moment he was expir- 
ing. In the same way, St. Alphonsus died on a Wednesday 
while the Angeius bell was being rung: another notable 
instance of Father Clement's resemblance to his Holy 
Founder. 

The Ursulines had just sat down to dinner when they re- 
ceived the sad news. Their grief was such that they could 
not eat, but all with one accord repaired to the church there 
to implore of our Sacramental Lord for the eternal repose 
of the blessed soul of their beloved Father; and likewise to 
obtain through his intercession, a good and zealous confessor 
as his successor. A little later, some of F. Clement's disciples 
came to the monastery to give the poor nuns some more 
details of the last moments of the venerable departed. 
The sorrow of the Community was only softened by the 
thought of the new and powerful Protector they had gained 
in Heaven : while they thanked God who had granted them 
for seven years so holy and spiritual a guide. 



The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 307 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

The Solemn Funeral Obsequies of Father Clement. 

NO sooner had the soul of Father Clement passed to a 
better life, than the body was vested in the habit of the Con- 
gregation, with a violet stole on which was embroidered the 
emblems of the Passion and his sacerdotal beretta on his 
head: and then placing him in an open coffin he was taken 
to the house of the Chaplain of the Ursulines which was 
then empty, and placed in a room on the first floor so as to 
give easy access to the public who wished to venerate the 
holy remains. 

The room was hung with black and on some tressels in 
the middle the coffin was placed surrounded with torches 
and lights. The news of his death spread rapidly, even in 
the most distant quarters of Vienna ; so that from all sides 
they hastened to look once more on the face of him who had 
been their father and their friend and to kiss the hand which 
had distributed so many benefits among them. 

Towards evening the crowd round the bier was extra- 
ordinary and every one was anxious to touch the revered 
body with some object which they afterwards kept as a relic. 
It was indeed edifying to see that weeping, kneeling crowd 
who instead of praying for were invoking him and saying : 
rr He does not want our prayers : it is we who need his inter- 
cession." Every one had some tale to tell of his sanctity and 
his charity: and all implored for some little scrap of his 
clothes, of his hair and of anything he had used or worn. 

Every one. likewise, was struck with his expression, for 
he seemed not dead but asleep and with a sweet smile on 
his face, which was pale, certainly, but with a peculiarly 
bright glow which made every one exclaim : ''Look at our 
Father, reposing like a Saint!" and Father Rinn declared 



308 The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 

that "his countenance after death was transfigured." Among 
those who pressed round the bier was the Countess Szechenyi, 
who was not able to restrain her tears, as she kissed again 
and again the hands that had so often blessed her. And 
when some one implored her not to do so for fear of infec- 
tion, she replied : "O ! do not fancy such a thing for a mo- 
ment. The Saints don't bring harm to any one." 

Late at night when the room was at last clear, F. Binn 
took a portrait of him, which was very successful and which 
is the origin of all subsequent pictures of our Saint. Under 
this picture he wrote those words of Ecclesiasticus (48. 11.): 
^Beati qui te viderunt, et in amicitia tua decorati sunt" 

The following morning the concourse of people Avas still 
greater. Every one was asking about the funeral: and all* 
that could he said was that it would be as quiet and humble 
as possible, as there was no one but F. Stark, who was barely 
convalescent, to see after it. 

But our Lord, Who, if He permitted His faithful servant 
to be humbled in life did not choose it to be so in death, so 
arranged matters that his funeral was the most solemn and 
magnificent one possible. And it would seem as if F. Cle- 
ment had foreseen it: for when F. Stark had asked him his 
wishes respecting it, he merely answered: "Do not trouble 
about it all; God will see to it." 

The funeral had been fixed for the 1 6 th of March. Nobody 
expected a great concourse of people: no invitations had 
been sent out: and even his intimate friends had not made 
any special arrangements. But nevertheless, to the amaze- 
ment of every one, not only all the streets through which 
the procession was to pass were crammed with people, but 
also the great Square of St. Stephen's. From all the suburbs 
came troops of poor, artisans, widows, children, labourers of 
all trades, each one only anxious to give the last tribute of 
affectionate veneration to their common Father and bene- 
factor. From the University, both Students and Professors 



The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 309 

poured ont with equal eagerness. Official men, soldiers, 
men of letters, priests and Religious, men and women of 
the highest rank,- with magnificent equipages, were mingled 
with the people, only anxious to testify their intense love 
and veneration for him who was heing borne to his last 
earthly home. But what proved the supernatural character 
of this manifestation was the way in which the students of 
the Archiepiscopal Seminary came in a body without any 
orders from superior authority or any previous intimation 
of the hour when the funeral would take place. On which 
subject the Prelate Willim, Dean of the Church of St. Peters 
in Vienna writes: "I had not the happiness of knowing Fa- 
ther Clement in life; but as a student of St. Stephen's Se- 
minary we were all impelled to attend his magnificent ob- 
sequies. When we came into the Cathedral we saw to our 
astonishment that the great doors were thrown open, called 
of the 'Giants , which only occurs at royal Or Archiepiscopal 
funerals. No one ever knew who had given orders to have 
them opened: but certainly such a sight was never seen in 
Vienna. The curious thing] was that when we came home, 
the Rector asked each one of us "who had given permission 
for us to attend ?" But no one could say anything save "that 
they felt compelled to go." 

At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the procession left Father 
Clement's own house for the Ursuline Church. Dom [Francis 
Schmidt his confessor and Dom Zacchary Werner led the 
way. The bier of this poor and humble Religious was borne 
by twelve young men of noble family including Edward von 
Unkhrechtsberg, Frederick von Held and many others. The 
Ursulines had obtained permission to see it from the window 
of their monastery and Sister Thaddeus deposed : "That the 
multitude of people was so great of every class and rank 
that they could hardly move along .... people who met 
the procession asked with amazement what grand personage 
could be going to be buried? most of those who followed were 



310 The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 

weeping bitterly which was some consolation to us who were 
so heart-broken at losing such a Father. When the bier ar- 
rived before the door of our church F. Schmidt made the 
bearers rest and gave the absolution according to the rite." 

The weather was gloomy and rainy and it was nearly dark 
by the time the procession arrived at the Cathedral. But 
here a new surprise awaited them. The whole Cathedral 
was a blaze of light and thousands of lighted wax candles 
were borne by the crowd, which was the more curious be- 
cause it is not at all the custom in Vienna to have lighted 
tapers at funerals, and no one could ever find out who had 
provided them. In the process of beatification this question 
was asked: but no one could answer it. This enormous 
crowd entered by those gigantic gates and filled the whole 
Cathedral to such an extent that as Dr. Veith wrote "they 
could scarcely move." Yet there was no disorder and the 
deep religious silence of the people was only broken by the 
music. Then F. Werner in a voice broken by emotion, pro- 
nounced the absolution over the body, which was then borne 
to the mortuary chapel, amidst the tears and prayers of the 
crowd, who then dispersed as quietly as they had come. 
Truly God would thus bear public testimony to the holiness 
of His faithful servant! 

The next day, the body was taken to the Cemetery of Sta. 
Maria von Enzersdorf, distant about three hours from Vienna, 
where Baron von Penkler had prepared a sepulchre for it 
next to that of his own family. 

Many of F. Clement's friends accompanied the hearse to 
the cemetery, where, in the Parish Church of the Franciscans, 
Werner celebrated the solemn Requiem Mass ; after which 
the body was placed in the sepulchre, Werner giving the 
last absolution. A marble cross was raised above the tomb 
at the foot of which was the following inscription : 



The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 311 

Joannes Clemens Maria Hofbauer 

Congregationis S.S. Redemptoris Vicarius Generalis 

Natus Tassovici in Moravia an. 1751. 

Obiit Vindobonae die 15. Martis an. 1820. 

Fidelis servus et prudens. 

On the octave of his death, that is, on the 23 rd of March, 
a solemn Requiem Mass was sung in the Ursuline Church 
which his friends had united in decorating in the most 
beautiful manner. The celebrant was one of his warmest 
admirers, Professor Ackermann, a regular Canon of Kloster- 
neuburg, near Vienna. So magnificent a funeral for a humble 
Religious was the talk of all Vienna. The "Austrian Observer'' 
published the following notice of his death from the pen of 
Adam Miiller. 

"On" the 15 th instant at midday there expired in this city, 
at the age of 69, Father Clement Maria Hofbauer, Vicar 
General of the Congregation of St. Alphonsus de Liguori, 
called Redemptorists , and the Confessor of the Ursuline 
Sisters in Vienna. How much good, even in the most dis- 
astrous times, one single man can do who is faithful to 
his Lord, the very walls of St. Bennone in Warsaw would 
tell, if there were not thousands and thousands of other 
witnesses who by him were fed and clothed and led back to 
God and guided in the narrow road of true Christian virtue. 
When at a sign of the French Emperor, who then had the 
fate of Poland in his hands, Father Clement was compelled 
to abandon the magnificent and invaluable foundation he 
had made in Warsaw, he returned to his own country, and 
since 1808 lived in Vienna. The incalculable good he has 
done in our midst and the fruits of his apostolic labours will 
only be known to our grand-children. Nobles and peasants, 
learned and unlearned, weep equally the loss of their com- 
mon father and guide : and those who have only known of 
him by report, will feel that a grand column of faith, of Re- 



312 The solemn Funeral Obsequies of F. Clement. 

ligion, and of Patriotism has been cut down in our midst. 
The sorrow of so great a loss can only be mitigated by the 
thought of his exceeding happiness and the feeling that he 
is still living in the incalculable good he has done amongst 
us." 

Even the Emperor was much afflicted at the news and 
mourned that he had only so lately appreciated him at his 
just value. 

From that hour many and especially his confessor gave 
him the title of "Saint". Canon George Uhl wishing to con- 
sole the Ursulines, told them : "That the Church had lost, in 
that admirable priest, a burning and a shining star which 
would not cease to give light for all eternity." And the 
Chaplain of the Court and Confessor of the Empress Caro- 
line, Don Sebastian Job, speaking to the Salesians the day 
after his death, said: "Lift up your hands to Heaven and 
pray to our Lord that He may send fresh labourers into 
His vineyard: for yesterday He sent us a terrible blow, 
when He called to Himself the Apostle of Vienna , the 
column and example of all this Diocese. Pray to Him 
that He may in some way make up to us for this irreparable 
loss : and grant us the grace to imitate ' the virtues of His 
faithful servant; so that being united with him, we may 
one day praise and glorify our Lord for all eternity in 
Heaven." 

Even in Rome, F. Clement's death made a great sensa- 
tion: and the sorrow was felt by none more than by Car- 
dinal Consalvi, who communicated the sad news to John 
von Pilat and Baron Bucholz, two of Father Clement's great 
friends, who where then in the eternal city. 



F. Clements personal Appearance and Character. 313 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

Father Clement's personal appearance and character. 

WE think our readers may like to have some idea of 
Father Clement's personal appearance and we will there- 
fore quote the words of one of his first disciples in Vienna, 
Josephine Biringer. 

"He was of middle height and naturally of a strong con- 
stitution; his chest and shoulders were broad, his head round 
and well formed, and his face rather round than oval. 
Although he had always a kind of dignified manner yet he 
was ever amiable and smiling. He generally spoke with his 
eyes half shut : but when he had to defend some truth or 
article of faith then a sort of light would shine in them 
which I can only compare to a lamp. He walked well: 
only his head was generally a little bent forwards. Though 
he eat little and was generally overwhelmed with fatigue, 
yet he could not be said to be either pale or thin. His 
strength and energy were shown in every action: but he 
had no symptom of pride about him. He always wore the 
habit of his Congregation : in the summer a black cloak of 
thin material with a high collar, which he used to throw 
over his arm so as not to show the rosary he almost always 
held in his hand: in the winter he wore a dark blue cloak. 
He hardly ever wore anything on his head even out of doors 
but a little black scull-cap. He had black hair which in the 
last years of his life became grey." A Salesian Sister, Maria 
Antonia Olt, adds to this description: "In the spring of 
1S16 I used to stand in the Vienna market to sell butter 
and eggs and one day I remarked a venerable priest passing 
by whose appearance struck me so much that I followed 
him with my eyes till he turned into a side street. I cannot 
tell vou what it was in his manner which made such an im- 



314 F. Clement's personal Appearance and Character. 

pression upon me ; but he looked like a picture of our Saviour 
bearing His Cross. I asked who he was and found out it was 
Father Clement, who was looked upon by all as a model of 
goodness and charity. His face positively beamed with 
sweetness and kindness ; but I never saw him laugh.'* 

Dr. Veith writes: "After 44 years he always appears be- 
fore my eyes as I used so see him in life. He was a man of 
singular amiability; modest, simple, humble, prudent and 
whose charity was really engrained in him. He was always 
burning with love towards God and man , rooted in Faith, 
beyond measure merciful, and one who never sought his 
X)wn interests but always those of Jesus Christ. In Faith and 
charity he was really an Apostle, who made himself all 
things to all men, and who was full of the grace of God. I 
do not hesitate to compare him to St. Philip Neri and St. 
Vincent of Paul ; for in the authority he exercised over the 
hearts of men he certainly was not second to either of those 
two great Saints.** And later on he writes: "I was always 
persuaded that he practised all Christian virtues in an he- 
roic degree : that is with all the strength of his soul ; in the 
full vigour of his faith; with habitual and remarkable ab- 
negation of himself; with extraordinary purity of intention; 
Avith intrepid courage both in his works and in his love of 
suffering for the glory of God and of the Church; above 
all, with a charity and a mercifulness which I never saw 
equalled. And I can positively assert that he practised all 
these virtues up to the very last moment of his life." 

Canon Greif expresses himself in the same manner. "He 
was a man after God's own heart, full of love and simpli- 
city and a mirror of virtue to all around him. He had the 
secret of drawing to himself the hearts of men and of treat- 
ing each according to their different natures and dispositions. 
This good shepherd never hesitated to go out of his way to 
seek a sheep that was lost and never wearied till he had 
brought him home to the fold and put him in the way of 



F. Clemenfs personal Appearance and Character. 315 

salvation. His extraordinary charity disarmed even his 
bitterest enemies. The only person he never appreciated or 
took any care of was himself: and he would give away every 
single thing he had. Such was his life." 

Canon Maximilian Hurez adds : 

fC What I admired so much in F. Clement was not only 
his acuteness of intelligence and the great clearness of his 
judgment, but his sobriety of spirit; his continued zeal in 
prayer; his constancy in the practice of every virtue; his 
incessant striving after perfection ; the sweetness and truly 
Christian courtesy with which he dealt with every one, 
noble or simple: his extraordinary prudence in action: his 
intense gratitude for favours received ; his courage amidst 
the most unjust persecutions; his remarkable modesty in 
words and works ; his gentleness in correcting or teaching : 
his inexhaustible charity towards the poor ; his extraordinary 
temperance as regarded himself; his great vigilance in 
guarding purity of heart : his extreme circumspection in the 
guidance and direction of souls; his warm attachment 
and devotion to the Holy See; his extreme anxiety for the 
maintenance of Catholic Doctrines in all their purity ; his 
lively faith : his unshaken hope ; his charity both towards 
God and his neighbour — a charity which was ever ready for 
every sacrifice; his entire submission to and acceptance of 
the will of God, whether in moral or physical sufferings; 
his strength of mind in bearing trials and adversities : and 
finally his invariable perseverance in the exercise of all 
these rare virtues until his death." 

We will conclude with a few words from Sister von 
Welschenau and Louisa Xavier von Pilat whom we have 
often quoted: 

"T. Clement was never out of humour or sad: neither was 
he too gay. On his face there was always the same ex- 
pression of sweetness and peace and union with God." 
"Sometimes there was an extraordinary light on his coun- 



316 F. Clement's personal Appearance and Character. 

tenance, as if it were the reflection of the purity of his soul, 
and that blessed tranquillity of spirit which is the fruit of 
holy joy. There was always a quiet brightness and joyous- 
ness about him which was never disturbed by any passion." 
In fact every witness in the process of his beatification spoke 
in a like manner. Some called him a Seraphim burning with 
Divine Love; others an Angel of peace and consolation; a 
third would speak of him as an Apostle in zeal, and as a 
Martyr for the rights and liberties of the Church. All joined 
in calling him the Father of the poor and an example of every 
virtue. 



THE FOURTH BOOK. 



CHAPTER I. 

On the Foundation of the Congregation in Vienna. 

[1820.] 

WITH the death of Father Clement all hope of the esta- 
blishment of the Congregation in Vienna appeared 
to have vanished. Snch a work required a man of talent and 
energy and with special graces for the purpose: and who 
could be found to possess them in the same degree? 

The only Redemptorist then remaining in Vienna was 
Father Martin Stark: but he was a stranger in Austria; 
young and without experience; nor would it have been 
possible for him to conduct such delicate negotiations or to 
govern a Religious Community in its birth. F. Clement had 
said in confidence to his disciple Madlener : "If the Congre- 
gation be established in Vienna, I shall send F. Stark into 
Switzerland ; for he is not fit to be Superior." 

Hence F. Clement's companions were thrown into the ut- 
most despair by his death : and some of his disciples had 
almost made up their minds to give [up the idea of forming 
a Congregation of Redemptorists and to go and join the 
Oratorians. But such was not the will of God. Don John 
Madlener, who was the one of F. Clement's disciples who 
best understood his wishes, who had entered so greatly into 

317 ^ 



318 On the Foundation of the Congregation in Vienna. 

his spirit and to whom he had confided most of his plans, 
began by determining to continue the evening conferences 
of young men which had done such good and persuaded 
F. Darnaut, the confessor of the Emperor, to undertake 
their direction. This from veneration towards F. Clement, 
he willingly agreed to ; and soon proposed that these con- 
ferences should be held in his own apartment in the palace, 
instead of in Madlener's house. The excellent spirit which 
F. Darnaut discovered in these young men, their pious feel- 
ings and the solid principles which F. Clement had in- 
stilled into them, pleased him so much that when they came 
to him one day, in a body, and made known their earnest 
wish to be admitted into the Redemptorist Congregation as 
soon as it was legally established in Austria, he decided, by 
the advice of the Counciller of State, Baron Stifft, to present 
at once a petition to the Emperor for the fulfilment of his 
old promise to Father Clement. 

Accordingly, the petition was drawn up and signed by 30 
of F. Clement's disciples, some of whom wished to enter at 
once and the rest, as soon as their worldly affairs could be 
settled. F. Darnaut presented it and it was most favour- 
ably received. This was only six weeks after F. Clement's 
death and already his prophecy was being fulfilled ! On the 
30 th of April the Imperial Decree appeared, approving of 
the Foundation of the Redemptorist Congregation in Austria, 
giving them leave to receive novices, and assigning to them, 
in Vienna, the Church of St. Maria della Scala, with the 
house adjoining. In addition to this, the Emperor wrote a 
letter with his own hand to the Archbishop, begging him to 
arrange with Madlener for the immediate formation of the 
Community. 

Great was the joy and consolation of Father Clement's 
friends and spiritual sons when this decree was promulgated 
and every one was filled with admiration at the wonderful 
leading of God's Providence. Who could have thought it 



On the Foundation of the Congregation in Vienna. 319 

possible that a Congregation so devoted to the Holy See ; so 
contrary to the spirit of the times . could be approved of in 
a State where Josephism was still rampant and all the men 
in power were its bitter enemies'? Well might Archbishop 
Hohenwart exclaim to Madlener: "Look at the effect of 
Father Clement's prayers! God has dealt with him as with 
Moses, to whom He showed the Promised Land. Now he is 
praying for you in Heaven and he is more powerful and 
more useful to you there than he could be on earth." 

Madlener being still Chaplain of the Church of St. Au- 
gustine could not at once enter the Congregation: but he 
worked energetically in its formation with F. Stark and the 
little band who had gathered round him : and obtained him- 
self all the necessary faculties from the ecclesiastical and 
civil authorities. But they could not at once take possession 
of St. Maria della Scala. for the repairs of the church were 
not yet completed and the house was still occupied by cer- 
tain tenants. However the holy Sons of St. Francis came to 
the rescue, and in their charity offered F. Stark and his 
companions part of their convent of "St. Jerome" until their 
new quarters were ready. They also gave them free entrance 
to their choir, sacristy and church for all spiritual exercises, 
and likewise the use of their refectory at certain hours. 
In this way the little community in Vienna was begun. 

The 19 th of May. the vigil of Pentecost, was chosen for 
the giving of the habit to the first novices, who if they were 
not numerous . were all remarkable men in their different 
ways and had all been disciples of Father Clement. 

It was a source of edification to all to see these young 
men. mostly of noble birth, carrying their own straw mat- 
trasses through the streets of Vienna to the Franciscan Con- 
vent. They were seven : the Priest Pajalich. who had already 
received from F. Clement the permission to wear the habit 
of the Congregation except the white collar: Francis 



320 On the Foundation of the Congregation in Vienna. 

Springer, Edward Cav. von Unkhrechtsberg, Frederick von 
Held, and Antony Prigl. There was also a certain Nossal, 
an ex-novice Premonstratensian, and a lay-brother, Fink. 

Great was the joy and consolation of the devout followers 
ofF. Clement, when on the Feast of Pentecost , they saw 
them serve at the altars in the Religious habit which F. 
Stark had given them the day before. The necessity of the 
case had created F. Stark Superior and he did his utmost 
to instruct the novices in the practices of religious life. 
Frederick von Held who was well known in Vienna and 
had a good judicial practice, gave incalculable help to F. 
Stark, and Pajalich was made master of novices. On the 
30 th of June the young community experienced a heavy loss 
in the death of the venerable Archbishop Hohenwart, who 
had always been their greatest friend and protector. On the 
2 nd of August, the Feast of St. Alphonsus, two fresh novices 
joined their Congregation, Francis Doll, and Francis Kos- 
macek, who took on that day the habit of the Congregation, 
and they were joined a little later by Joseph Puz and Joseph 
von Hies, so that the little community increased steadily. 
Father Stark, however, feeling strongly the need of a more 
experienced Superior, intreated permission of the Emperor 
to call in a strangei;: and the Emperor, without consulting 
his ministers and listening only to the dictates of his own 
heart, granted the desired permission : so that on the 20 th of 
October F. Passerat arrived in Vienna, the Father who 
had succeeded F. Clement in the charge of Vicar General of 
the houses beyond the Alps, and F. Clement's most intimate 
friend. 

P. Passerat was received by the Vienna novices as an 
Angel from Heaven, for they knew him well by reputation, 
having so often heard of him from F. Clement. And his 
venerable and dignified appearance and edifying life only 
increased their high esteem for his person and character. 
He undertook at once the education of the novices and the 



On the Foundation of the Congregationin Vienna. 321 

spiritual direction of the Community, leaving the care of 
temporalities to F. Stark. 

On All Saints 7 Day he gave the habit of the Congregation 
to Dr. John Madlener, who had done so much for the founda- 
tion and who was the twelfth to receive the habit in the 
Franciscan Convent. 

The restoration of the Church of Sta. Maria della Scala 
and the repairs of the house, being completed, Christmas 
Day was chosen to take possession of the new buildings by 
the Congregation. On Christmas Eve, likewise, F. Passerat 
gave the habit to three more of F. Clement's disciples, An- 
tony Passy, Count Charles Welsersheimb and John Rey- 
mann. 

On Sunday the 24 th of December the Auxiliary Bishop 
and Vicar Capitular, Matthew Steindi, solemnly blessed the. 
church, said mass and, in an eloquent sermon, declared it 
opened anew for public worship. In the mean while, F. 
Passerat studied in every way to form his novices into per- 
fect Religious and to infuse into them the spirit of St. Al- 
phonsus. He succeeded admirably and on the 2 nd of August 
of the following year nine of them were admitted to their 
Religions Profession, among whom were Pajalich and Mad- 
lener. Father Passerat also recalled the Fathers who had 
been sent to Wallachia, the work in Vienna increasing daily. 

The good lay-brother, Emanuel Kunzmann, who on the 
suppression of the Congregation in Warsaw had retired to 
the Cistercian Abbey of the Holy Cross, no sooner heard of 
the new Vienna foundation, than the hastened to join it; only 
too happy to end his life with his Religious bretheren. 

The Congregation at Sta. Maria della Scala increased so 
rapidly that the house could not contain them ; and the centre 
of a populous city being unfitted for a noviciate, F. Passerat 
determined to look for a second house in the country; and 
in this matter Divine Providence again came to their aid: 
for Archduke Maximilian d'Este, F. Clement's old friend 

21 



322 The Veneration shown to F. Clement's 

and benefactor, heard of their need and bought them a 
house at Weinhaus near Vienna; to which place the no- 
viciate was removed; and remained there till, after some 
years, it was transferred to. Eggenburg, a small town in the 
diocese of St. Hippolytus, where it still exists. 

In course of time, many more of F. Clement's old friends 
and disciples joined the Congregation including John von 
Pilat, the Court Architect, the Court Chaplain, Joseph Rey- 
mann, and many others. Upwards of 30 of his spiritual sons 
thus entered the Community and showed themselves by 
their piety and zeal to be worthy followers of their holy 
Father and friend. 



CHAPTER II. 

The veneration shown to F. Clement's tomb in Sta. Maria 
di Enzersdorf. Solemn translation or his relics to Vienna 

in 1862. 

FROM the earliest days of the Church the tomb of the 
Saints have been places of pilgrimage and devotion : so that 
it was no wonder that the Sepulchre of F. Clement at En- 
zersdorf became at once an object of veneration to the faith- 
ful. Francis Fuchs, Councillor of Finance, asserted in the 
cause of his beatification, "that the crowds who flocked from 
all parts and of every class to pray at his tomb was extra- 
ordinary." The cemetry was some way from the town and 
ordinarily closed: so that the people would either scale the 
walls or bribe the porter to open the gates. This man, hoAv- 
ever, complained bitterly of the way the pilgrims wasted his 
time and his money; and declared "that they would stay for 
hours and gather every little flower which grew near his grave 
and even carry off the earth, from their intense devotion to 
his relics." Nor was this a barren devotion: for many were 
the prayers granted through F. Clement's intercession : and 



Tomb in Sta. Maria di Enzersdorf. 323 

a great many of his friends begged to be buried near him ; 
so that if any one now visits that spot, they will find the 
names of many whom we have mentioned in this biography.* 
In the year 1846 some of F. Clement's most devoted dis- 
ciples wished to examine his mortal remains : and accord- 
ingly the sepulchre was opened in the presence of the Father 
Guardian, the Parish Priest of the place, Father Weidlich 
and other Redemptorists, a surgeon and various other per- 
sons. The dress appeared at first to have remained intact: 
but on exposure to the air it was reduced to dust. Only the 
violet stole and the berretta were found fresh and entire, 
although they had been interred for 26 years! And as these 
two things are the special signs of the Priesthood indicating 
jurisdiction and the faculty of announcing the Divine Word, 
so it seemed as if God had permitted this miracle of preser- 
vation to glorify His servant, who had been so indefatigable 
in the administration of the Sacraments and in preaching 
eternal truths. F. Weidlich carried both off as precious re- 
lics and hid them in his own room during the revolution of 
1848. In his last illness he frequently impressed on the 
woman of the house the importance of these relics : so that 
after his death, when the Congregation was reestablished 
in Vienna, she brought them back to the house; but they 
were given to some one who did not know their value and 
so they were unhappily lost. 

The examination of the relics being concluded the bones 
were enclosed in a new coffin and placed in a sepulchre 
which had been prepared on purpose with a stone cover, on 
which was engraved his name. And here they remained till 
the year IS 62. 



* Among the rest we find the tombs of Werner, of Adam Mtiller, of Fre- 
derick Klinkowstrom and his wife Louisa, of Baron Paul and Maria Hiib- 
ner, of Elisabeth and Mary Paul von Pilat. of Francis Bernard von Bucholz, of 
Baron Penkler. of Miinch-Bellinghausen, of Charles Ernest Jarke and many 
others, awaiting with him the moment of a glorious resurrection. 



324 Solemn Translation of his 

But the Redemptorist Fathers could not bear to be sepa- 
rated from the body of one, who, after St. Alphonsus, they 
looked upon as their founder, and so on the 3 rd of November 
1862 the Rector of Sta. Maria della Scala, F. Joseph Kasse- 
walder, accompanied by other priests, by the doctor of the 
district of Hietzing, Dr. Effenberger, and the Surgeon Seng, 
arrived at the convent of the Franciscans at EJnzersdorf to- 
wards evening. Then, the Redemptorists and the Francis- 
cans went in procession to the cemetery, from whence they 
carried the precious case of relics and deposited them in an 
outer coffin of zinc. The next morning it w T as taken to the 
church and after the absolution according to the rite, the 
Redemptorists and Franciscans accompanied it to the limits 
of the parish, followed by a- multitude of the faithful, weep- 
ing at the loss of what they considered so great a treasure. 
The precious case was then put in a coach and when it came 
to Hietzing, a village near Vienna, all the bells began to toll. 
It was late when it arrived at Sta. Maria della Scala; but 
nevertheless not only the church but the Piazza and the ad- 
joining streets were so thronged with people that it was with 
the utmost difficulty the carriage could draw up to the door 
of the church. Here the sacred relics were received by a 
large number of priests to the sound of the ringing of a 
multitude of bells. All the Superiors of the different Austrian 
Houses were present with F. Mangold, as the representative 
of the Archduke Maximilian , F. Antony Miller, Rector of 
the College of Altotting, and Michael Benger, master of no- 
vices, who had come from Bavaria. But among all the Re- 
demptorists none came more joyfully than three of F. Cle- 
ment's special disciples, F. F. Hatscher, Krai and Petrak, 
the latter of whom had the honour of bearing the cross which 
ushered in the triumphal entry of their beloved Father into 
that church. Finally, after the Provincial F. John Jentsch, 
had received the precious treasure consigned to his care, the 
office of the dead was sung and the absolution given. Then 



e Relics to Vienna, in 1S62. 325 

the coffin being closed and sealed, it was placed in a mau- 
soleum erected at the Gospel side of the High altar. The 
upper part of this marble tomb represented the recumbent 
figure of this great servant of God and is the work of the 
famous sculptor, Gassner. 

At this solemn function, the Apostolic Nunzio and the 
Archbishop of Olmiitz (von Fiirstenberg , now both Cardi- 
nals) were present, together with several other eminent ec- 
clesiastical dignitaries. 

God deigned to show by an extraordinary event His ap- 
proval of the honour done to our Saint. A woman who was 
inflrmarian in the house of the Sisters of Charity at Gratz, 
was one day violently assaulted by a patient in delirium, 
who threw her on the ground and stamped on her chest, so 
that the poor nurse had ever after violent spittings of blood 
which medical science had tried in vain to cure. She had 
that day obtained leave to assist at this function in Sta. Maria 
della Scala, and all of a sudden felt a certainty that F. Cle- 
ment would heal her. She drew near the relics imploring 
his intercession and instantly obtained what she desired. 
This sudden cure was the first of many which it pleased 
God to grant through the prayers of His servant in that 
church. 

The following day being the 5 th of Nov., the Cardinal Arch- 
bishop, Rauscher, sang a solemn High mass of Requiem for 
his beloved Father and Director and F. StafFler pronounced 
a touching panegyric on this great servant of God, which 
was published in all the papers. 

From that day to this, the concourse of the faithful round 
F. Clement's tomb has gone on steadily increasing and the 
fresh wreaths and flowers which are continually placed there 
are an irrefragable proof that his memory is held in grate- 
ful veneration by many faithful hearts. 

The place which his remains had occupied in the cemetery 
at Sta. Maria in Enzersdorff was never given to another, but 



326 His Apparition after Death. o 

left as it was and looked upon as a sacred spot: and Canon 
Unkhrechtsberg adorned it with the following inscription: 

Ossa Ven. S. Dei dementis M. Hofbauer inde Viennam 

translate, et in Ecclesia B. M. V. ad Litus deposita sunt die 

4. Nov. 1862. 



CHAPTER III. 
His apparition after death. His miracles. 

IT was not only by the veneration paid to his tomb that 
our Lord was pleased to glorify His servant, but by his ap- 
paritions and the miracles wrought through his intercession 
after his death. 

We have already mentioned his appearance to F. Pilat to 
whom he smoothed the way for his admission into the Con- 
gregation : we will now relate what happened to F. Werner, 
which he announced publicly in the pulpit on the 1 st Sun- 
day in Advent 1822 in the Ursuline Church. 

"I shall not live much longer," Werner began, "for Father 
Clement has warned me that my end is at hand. I had 
finished my night prayers and had just laid down on my 
bed when my room was filled with a bright light which sur- 
passed that of the sun. In the midst of that light I saw F. 
Clement, my beloved father, master, and friend. He held in 
his hand a lily, an olive branch and a palm and spoke to 
me as follows: "Zacchary! come, come, come quickly!" and 
having said those words he disappeared. This apparition 
was no imagination on my part. I was neither asleep, nor 
dreaming: and I am as certain that I saw F. Clement as I 
am that I am now alive and that I am at this moment in 
church before Our Lord present in the Holy Eucharist. 
From that instant, a weakness which I never felt before, has 
never left me and I am quite sure I shall die very soon." 



His Apparition after Death. 327 

His death happened, as he had foreseen, only a week or 
two later. 

In the same way F. Clement appeared to one of the Ur- 
suline nuns, Sister Sebastian, who for her piety and simpli- 
city was much esteemed by the Community as well as by 
Father Clement. One day he jokingly called her "a Saint." 

She replied. "I? a poor worm! But your Reverenpe, who 
converts so many sinners, baptises Jews, instructs such mul- 
titudes of people and bears our Lord to the sick and dying, 
well deserves that title, for those are the acts of a Saint." 

F. Clement turning laughingly to the other Sisters re- 
plied: "She has paid me in my own coin!" and then added: 
"I will assist you at the hour of death and send you to Pa- 
radise." "That is all right!" exclaimed Sister Sebastian. "Re- 
collect your Reverence has pledged your word : and I shall 
remind you of your promise." Accordingly many years after 
F. Clement's death, this good Sister's last hour came; and 
she, remembering well his words, called upon him for help. 
She had scarcely invoked him when her whole face lit up 
with joy and she cried out: "O! Father Hofbauer! Father 
Hofbauer! he is here!" after which she expired directly and 
with such calm and peace and joy that the expression remained 
long after her death. Evidently F. Clement had fulfilled his 
promise and came to conduct her home. 

Another fact of the same nature is related of an American 
Lady, who had become a Catholic in Rome in 1868, and 
two years after, fell into a consumption. The thought of 
death was terrible to her and still more to her husband. In 
this state she turned to Father Clement with confidence and 
hope : and made a novena before his picture and a relic she 
had obtained of him. Towards the end of the Novena he 
appeared to her, surrounded with light and looking at her 
with great tenderness pointed with his finger to Heaven and 
then disappeared. She understood at once that she was to 
prepare for the last dread passage ; but with that vision of 



328 F. Clemenfs Miracles. 

Heaven, her fears were dispelled and she told her husband 
what she had seen; which gave him also such consolation 
that both willingly accepted whatever should be the will of 
God. 

We will not weary our readers with the details of all the 
miracles operated by Father Clement since his death but 
only mention a few of the principal ones : 

Magdalene Kuntz cured of varicose veins which had burst 
internally and threatened her life — 1862. 

Baroness Agnes Fiath-disease of the hip joint — 1864. 

Maria Hoffman — dangerous tumour — 1864. 

Anna Berger — paralysis — 1864. 

Catherine Seidel — lameness and twisted legs — 1864. 

Vincent Felber — dropsy — 1866. 

Mary of St. Lucia — obstinate hemorrhage — 1865. 

Magdalene Sonnleithner — breaking of right arm — 1869. 

Mary Dunkel — dangerous confinement — 1864. 

Francis Peschke — a dead arm restored to life — 1876. 

The Superior of the Franciscans — inflammation of leg 
— 1881. 

&c &c 

Each and all of these cures were instantaneous, and each 
case had been given up by the doctors, who have since af- 
firmed that the recovery of their patients in each instance 
could only be ascribed to miracle. 

No less remarkable were the results of the invocation of 
F. Clement in temporal concerns. Feople were unexpectedly 
saved from ruin; fires were suddenly quenched; men des- 
perate from poverty, obtained work; servants found good 
places ; totally unhoped-for aid came from various quarters 
to the destitute — in fact, under whatever circumstances his 
intercession was asked for in faith and simplicity, the want 
was immediately supplied. May the narration of the graces 
thus obtained by his intercession, increase the faith of our 



The Fulfilment of F. Clement 1 s Prophecy. 329 

readers in his patronage and may they experience in their 
own persons the beneficial effects of his power with God. 



CHAPTER IV. 

The fulfilment of Father Clement's Prophecy as to the 

SPREAD OF THE ReDEMPTORIST CONGREGATION. 

AT the time of Father Clement's blessed death the Con- 
gregation only numbered 43 priests and a few lay-brothers 
north of the Alps. 

Revolutionary storms prevented him from gathering his 
disciples together in a regular Community and the only 
existing one was in Switzerland, which after 1828, was trans- 
ferred to Friburg. He had laboured hard to establish a house 
in France with F. Passerat and had been able to purchase 
a little property, at Bischenberg in Alsace : but it was not 
occupied till after his death. 

To Bucharest he had sent (as we have seen) three mission- 
aries, who, in the insurrection of 1821 were compelled to 
fly and return to Vienna. 

In fact, in 1820 almost all the Fathers were dispersed in 
various parts of Poland and Switzerland. From 1793 to 1820, 
that is for 27 years, F. Clement had borne the burden of 
Vicar General : which office was afterwards filled by his 
Successor, F. Passerat, for another 27 years: that is from 
May 1820 to April 1848: and he had, like Father Clement, 
his full share of troubles and persecutions. Nevertheless, in 
the midst of these hostile influences, God permitted the 
Congregation to spread in an extraordinary manner. Houses 
were founded in Vienna, Frohnleiten, Mautern, Marburg 
and Leoben in Styria : also in Innspruck in the Tyrol and 
at Eggenburg in lower Austria. In 1835, Francis the IV., 
Duke of Modena, called the Redemptorists into his states 



330 F. Clement's Prophecy on the Spread 

and gave them first the Hospital of St. Margaret in Modena ; 
then a house at Finale ; and another at Montecchio. There 
was also a Foundation at Lisbon in 1826, though afterwards 
suppressed. In 1831 the Redemptorists were called for in 
Belgium; first at Tournay; then, in 1833, at Liege and St. 
Trond: and in 1841, at Brussels, where they were given the 
church called "The Magdalen". In Holland, up to 1836, 
they occupied an old Capuchin Convent at Wittem. In 
France, from 1842 to 1847, four houses were founded: 
namely that of Landser in Alsace ; of St. Nicolas du Port, 
near Nancy ; of Teterchen in the Diocese of Metz ; and of 
Contamines-sur-Arve in upper Savoy. 

Whilst the Congregation was thus spreading in Europe, 
other houses were being founded in North America where 
the first Congregation was begun in 1833. They had great 
difficulties to overcome and were obliged to content them- 
selves at first with small and scattered missions up to the 
frontiers of Canada and among the Indians. But from 1836 
to 1847 they founded houses at Rochester and Buffalo in the 
State of New York ; at Baltimore in Maryland ; at Philadel- 
phia and Pittsburg in Pensylvania; in New York itself; at 
Detroit in Michigan ; and finally at New Orleans in Louisiana. 

At the request of the Apostolic Nunzio of Vienna Father 
Passerat sent some Fathers in 1833 to Bulgaria to provide 
for the spiritual wants of the neglected ^Catholics in the 
neighbourhood of Philipopolis. 

The Congregation of Propaganda gave the Superior of 
that mission the title and faculties of Vicar Apostolic and 
these Fathers laboured there till 1840 when a different ar- 
rangement was made by this same Propaganda. During that 
time many sunk from the plague and fevers to which that 
country is subject and died victims to their charity. 

When in 1839 the Cannonisation of St. Alphonsus was 
solemnised in the Vatican Basilica, F. Passerat, Vicar Ge- 
neral, with several other Fathers repaired to Rome. And it 






of the Medemptorist Congregation. 331 

was then that this Transalpine Congregation attracted the 
benevolent attention of Pope Gregory XVI. ; and a change 
in the administration was considered advisable. Hitherto, 
the houses north of the Alps had been governed by the Fa- 
ther General in Italy, which did very well when the houses 
were few. But now that the Congregation was so widely 
spread and even extended to America, it was necessary to 
form separate provinces and create Superiors as Provincials, 
like other Religious orders. 

A Pontifical decree was consequently issued on the 2 nd of 
July 1841, whereby the Congregation was divided at first into 
six provinces, three in Italy, and three beyond. Thus, while 
the Roman, Neapolitan and Sicilian Provinces depended on 
the Father General, whose residence was at Nocera de' Pa- 
gani, the Austrian, Swiss-French and Belgian were governed 
by a Vicar, nominated by the F. General, to whom the ful- 
lest faculties were given. 

In the year 1841, King Louis of Bavaria, who had assisted 
at the Cannonisation of St. Alphonsus, called the Redemp- 
torists into his Kingdom; and gave them a large house in 
the vicinity of the famous Sanctuary of Maria di Altotting. 
Thus the door was opened to them once more in Germany. 
A few years later they had a second house at Vilsbiburg in 
the Diocese of Ratisbon. 

Such was the progress of the Congregation till 1847, when 
the revolution broke out furiously against them. In Novem- 
ber of that year, they were forcibly expelled from their house 
at Friburg in Switzerland; and in 1848 their enemies ob- 
tained the suppression of the whole Community in Austria, 
and the Modenese. Even the house of Altotting was con- 
demned by the Governor of Bavaria; but thanks to the 
intercession of our Lady, the decree was not carried out. 

F. Passerat took refuge in Belgium where, from his ad- 
vanced age and sickness, he resigned the office of Vicar 
General: but owing to the disturbed state of the times, it 



332 F. Clement's Prophecy on the Spread 

was impossible to give him a successor, and on the contrary, 
the Provincials were given extraordinary faculties during 
the two following years.* 

The Vienna House being closed, two of the Fathers were 
sent to Norway. They established themselves at Christiana 
and built a fine church dedicated to the Saint and martyr 
King Olave, which was the first opened in Norway since 
the so-called "Reform" of Luther. 

When, in 1820, Father Passerat was made Vicar General 
of the Transalpine Congregation, the number of Fathers was 
43. Twenty years later they numbered 164, divided among 
17 houses, and when he gave up his office in 1848 there 
were upwards of 300 priests in the northern Congregation. 

The revolutionary storm having spent itself and liberty 
being once more restored to the Church in Austria, the Fa- 
thers returned to their respective houses and recommenced 
their missions among the people, which produced extra- 
ordinary fruit. The houses in the Modenese were also re- 
occupied. 

In Belgium a house was opened in Mons in 1848, and in 
1849, a second in Brussels, with the Church of St. Joseph. 

In America, a new house was founded in 1849, at Cum- 
berland in Maryland: and one in Bavaria at Niederach- 
dorf. 

In the mean while, that is, in 1843, some of the Belgian 
Fathers had gone over to England where they began work- 
ing in different missions; till, in 1848, they were able to 
purchase the house at Clapham near London, where they 
once more could form a regular Community and where they 
built a fine church along side. 

In 1850, with the approbation of the Holy See, the Amer- 
ican Houses were formed into a separate Province. Then 

* Father Passerat expired at Tournay on the 31st f October 1858 at 
the age of 86, rich in virtue and merits and a worthy son of Father • 
Clement. 



of the Redemptoi'ist Congregation. 333 

the Transalpine Congregation numbered 40 Colleges with 
320 priests and 220 clerics and lay-brothers. 

On the 1 st of July of that same year Father Rudolph de 
Smetana was named Vicar General. 

He was born in Vienna on the 7 tk of September 1802, 
where he had made his legal studies with great success and 
obtained a Government appointment. But after the early 
and unexpected death of his wife, he resolved to become a 
priest : entered the Congregation ; made his vows on the 5 th 
of Jan. 1831, and was ordained Priest on the 31 st of July of 
that same year. In the first years of his Religious life he 
devoted himself to philosophical studies and published a 
book of spiritual exercises which went through a great many 
editions. 

When he was appointed Vicar General, he established 
himself, with four consulters, at Coblentz in the Rhenish 
Provinces, and from thence, though always in a very suffer- 
ing state of health, he visited the houses in France, Belgium, 
Holland and England, so as to make himself thoroughly ac- 
quainted, with the state of the Congregation. In 1853, hav- 
ing visited the Modenese Houses, he was summoned to Rome 
by Pius IV. ; and on the 2 nd of July arrived in the eternal 
city and had the consolation of meeting the Holy Father 
Himself at the gates and to receive from him (together with 
his companion, the author of this work) the Apostolic Bene- 
diction as a pledge of his success. Very few days after, Car- 
dinal Fomari named him a member of the Commission ap- 
pointed to prepare the difinition of the immaculate concep- 
tion, and the Secretary of the Congregation of the Index 
requested him to pronounce judgment on the doctrines of 
Gunther. Thus Smetana' s great learning was at once recog- 
nised in Rome, where he rendered important services. 

On the 8 th of October 1853 a very important decision was 
arrived at as regards the Congregation. The Holy Father 
Pius IX. had obtained leave from the court at Naples that 



334 F. Clemenfs Prophecy on the Spread 

the Father General should remove his residence to Rome. 
But certain difficulties having supervened, a decree was 
issued by the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, 
that a General Chapter should be held in Eome for the Elec- 
tion of a Father General, who should hereafter reside in 
the eternal city and on whom all houses should be depen- 
dent save those in the Kingdom of the two Sicilies. 

It was incumbent, consequently on F. Smetana, in pur- 
suance of the Pontifical decree , to find a house in Rome ; 
and the Villa Caserta was then bought (which belonged to 
the Dukes of Gaetani) , to form the centre and seat of the 
Superior General ; besides being a fitting place wherein to 
hold the first General Chapter. 

During the five years that F. Smetana, as Vicar General, 
administered the affairs of the Transalpine Congregation, 
he conferred great and important benefits on the Society. 

During this time various new houses were founded. Through 
the munificence of Archduke Maximilian d'Este and of his 
niece, the Comtesse de Chambord, the house at Puchheim 
was opened in Upper Austria and another at Bussolengo 
near Verona. In France also, there were two fresh ones es- 
tablished, one at Douai, and another at Dunkirk, in the Arch- 
diocese of Cambrai. In North America one was founded at 
Anapolis in Maryland: and in Germany one at Bornhofen 
in the Diocese of Limburg, and one at Treves. In Holland 
two houses were opened : one at Amsterdam and the other 
at Bois-le-Duc : and finally two more were opened in Great 
Britain, one at Bishop's Eton near Liverpool and one at 
Limerick in Ireland. 

On the 26 th of April 1855, being the Feast of our Lady 
of good Counsel, the first General Chapter of the Congrega- 
tion was held in Rome. F. Smetana gave up the office of 
Vicar General; and on the 2 nd of May Father Nicholas Mau- 
ron was elected Father General and Superior of the whole 
Congregation. He was born on the 7 th of January 1818 at 



of the Redemptorist Congregation. 335 

St. Silvester near Friburg in Switzerland, where in 1825 the 
Congregation had a little house containing several Fathers 
with whom the young Nicholas contracted an intimate 
friendship. F. Joseph Hofbauer taught the first rudiments 
of Latin to him and his cotemporary Christopher Cosandey, 
who was afterwards Rector of the Friburg Seminary and is 
now Bishop of Lausanne. Mauron took the habit of the 
Congregation on the 17 th of October 1836, and after having 
laudably gone through his noviciate, was professed on the 
18 th of October 1837. Ordained priest on the 27 th of March 
1841, he was at once made Prefect and master of studies, in 
which double office he showed the most earnest care for his 
students. Then came the war of the Sonderbund and in 
Novbr. 184 7 Friburg fell into the hands of the Radicals, 
who instantly suppressed the Redemptorist College and Fa- 
ther Mauron escaped with great difficulty into Savoy, where 
he remained till March 1848, teaching moral theology to the 
clerics. Then the Provincial, F. Ottmann, called him to 
Landser in Alsace, where he laboured hard in the pulpit 
and the confessional : and the following year, while the Grand 
Duchy of Baden was occupied by the Prussian troops , he 
took part in a great mission given at Gengenbach near Ofien- 
burgh. On the 8 th of Sept. 1849, he was appointed Superior 
of the house at Landsee: and on the 1 st of Jan. 1851 he was 
made Provincial of Franco-Switzerland by Father Smetana, 
which post he filled till the General Chapter of 1855. 

The universal esteem which F. Mauron had acquired by 
his prudence, firmness and paternal charity in governing, 
induced the Chapter to elect him as Father General, although 
he was but 37 years of age. He has governed the Congre- 
gation ever since : and in spite of the grave political troubles 
of the times, its increase has been steady and continual. In 
America the number of houses have necessitated their di- 
vision into two provinces, and the same in Germany. Hol- 
land and Great Britain have also been erected into separate 



336 The Fulfilment of F. Clement's Prophecy. 

provinces : while it is impossible to say how much F. Mau- 
ron has done to foster the spirit of St. Alphonsus, to main- 
tain an exact observance of the rule and to defend the rights 
of the Congregation on all occasions. Hardly was the Chapter 
over, than the Fathers set to work to build a church in hon- 
our of our most holy Redeemer and St. Alphonsus , conti- 
guous to the Father General's house; which in 1866, was 
enriched by the ancient picture of the B. Virgin so well 
known under the title of "Perpetual Succour ". The veneration 
felt for this celebrated painting spread rapidly throughout 
the world and many have experienced the benefits of our 
Lady's intercession through that channel. Pius IX. visited 
twice the new Church of St. Alphonsus and prayed before 
this venerable picture, of which he had a copy made for his 
private chapel in the Vatican. The Holy Father also visited 
the house and the room of the Father General, all of which 
gave him great satisfaction. Only a short time before that 
great Pontiff passed to a better life, he told the Father Gen- 
eral how great was the consolation he derived from hearing 
of the good effected in that church , as well as all over the 
world, by the sons of St. Alphonsus. 

The last catalogue printed in 1867 of the numbers of the 
Transalpine Congregation were as follows : 

Fathers 664, clerical students 145, clerical novices 52, 
lay-brothers 441: in all 1302, divided into 9 provinces 
which contained altogether 7 i houses. But in the following 
years, the Congregation greatly increased ; and now the R,e- 
demptorists number more than a thousand priests and up- 
wards of 600 lay-brothers and students. 

We have mentioned that in 1876 the American Province 
was divided into two : but the Congregation had spread beyond 
the confines of the United States, both in the North and in 
the South. In 1858 they had accepted the difficult mission 
of St. Thomas, a Danish island in the West Indies, where 
many of the Fathers fell victims to the yellow fever so pre- 



Conclusion. 337 

valent in those islands; and they subsequently undertook 
the no less difficult mission of Paramaribo, in the Dutch 
Colony of Surinam, where the care of the lepers is both 
arduous and perilous. At the intreaty of the Excellent Pre- 
sident, Garcia Moreno, who died a martyr to the cause of 
religion, the Congregation also accepted in 1870 the forma- 
tion of two Colleges in the Republic of Ecuador, namely 
Cuenca and Rio-Bamba; and in 1876 that of Santiago in 
Chili. In later times two houses were also founded in Ca- 
nada, one English and the other French. In Spain also, 
after the political storms of 1868, the Congregation was re- 
established and now reckons five houses, all working admi- 
rably to the glory of God and the good of souls. In conclu- 
sion, from all parts of the world, earnest requests are sent 
to the Father General for more missioners to found fresh 
houses: requests which, to his sorrow, he has to refuse for 
want of sufficient subjects. Was not then F. Clement's pro- 
phecy abundantly fulfilled when he said : "After my death, 
the Congregation will be extended throughout many nations 
and will found many houses, which will last a long time." 



CHAPTER V. 

Conclusion. 

WE will not detain our readers long with the account of 
the process of Father Clement's Beatification and as we hope, 
ultimate Canonization : for this process is the same in every 
case. From the hour of F. Clement's death, his disciples 
and friends felt confident that he would , in due course , be 
raised to our altars : but it was not till F. Mauron was elected 
Father General that the matter was taken seriously in hand. 
In 1863 he named F. Brixis Quelox postulator of the cause, 
together with the Austrian Provincial, F. John Jentsch. 

22 



338 Conclusion. 

This cause went its usual slow but sure course ; and out of 
30 of the witnesses examined, 29 had known F. Clement 
personally. The enquiry at Vienna being finished, it was 
sent to Rome in May 1865. Then Pius IX. appointed Car- 
dinal Reisach zelator of the cause, which was brought be- 
fore the Congregation of Rites. The Emperor of Austria 
added his own petition to the Pope in favour of the cause, 
which was pleaded with equal zeal by all the most eminent 
Cardinals and Bishops who called F. Clement the "Liguori 
of the North" and "the Apostle" of the countries north of the 
Alps : as well as by the greater portion of the Polish , Aus- 
trian and German nobility. Finally Pius IX. on the 14 th of 
Febr. 1867, himself signed the decree for the introduction 
of the cause: and after nine years of careful enquiry into 
his acts, virtues, writings and miracles, the final decision 
was solemnly proclaimed by the Sovereign Pontiff, in pre- 
sence of the assembled Cardinals, Bisliops and Religious, 
declaring him " Venerable". This was on the 14 th of May 1876. 

In virtue of this decree, the heroic nature of his virtues 
was likewise recognised and approved and nothing remains 
but a favourable decision on the miracles operated by God 
at the intercession of His servant. On the 3 1 st of August 
1880 a fresh Congregation was held to this effect called 
"antipreparatoria". 

Hence, we have a -well-grounded hope that this matter 
will have as successful an issue as the last; and that before 
long we shall have the consolation of assisting at the solemn 
canonization of a man whom Divine Providence raised up 
in these calamitous times to encourage us in virtue and fill 
us with greater courage to fight valiantly the battles of our 
Lord. 

Father Clement may indeed exclaim with the Apostle: 
"I have fought a good fight: I have finished my course: I have kept 
the Faith;" for to all classes of persons he has left an example 
for imitation. 



Conclusion. 339 

To young men in the world and especially to students, 
lie has shown how, in the midst of the corruptions of the 
age, they can keep themselves pure and live christian lives, 
avoiding idleness and dangerous occasions, trampling under 
foot human respect and frequenting the Sacraments as the 
best safe-guards against temptation. 

To Religious he was a model of perfection and of every 
kind of virtue, in the midst of the most difficult circum- 
stances ; and he showed them likewise how they might re- 
main faithful to their vocation even at the cost of great sa- 
crifices. 

To missionaries he was a living example of the Apostolic 
life, being all on fire with the love of God , and with zeal 
for His honour and glory, and for the salvation of souls. 

Finally, to all Catholics he taught this important lesson: 
i. e. how to preserve purity of faith and veneration and obe- 
dience to the Roman Pontiff; while he showed them how in 
days of struggle and persecution, they should fight bravely 
for God and the Truth and thus defeat the enemies of the 
Church. 

Ah! let us strive to follow in the holy footsteps of him 
whose biography we have thus ventured to write and to re- 
produce his virtues in our daily lives. Then may we hope 
with confidence to share in his reward and to obtain that 
crown of glory which God will give to all who have faith- 
fully served him on earth. 



TROUBLES 

OF THE VENERABLE SERVANT OF GOD 

CLEMENT MAEIA HOFBAUER 

DURING THE PRUSSIAN GOVERNMENT IN WARSAW. 

A KULTURKAMPF STORY AT THE BEGINNING 
OF THE 19 ™ CENTURY. 



BEING AN APPENDIX TO THE LIFE OF THE 
VENERABLE F. HOFBAUER 



MICHAEL HARINGER. 



PREFACE TO APPENDDL 



AFTER having, two years ago, completed and published 
the second edition of the Life of Father Clement Hof- 
bauer, that venerable servant of God, we received, to our 
great and joyful surprise, a number of documents faithfully 
transcribed by an unknown hand in Warsaw, concerning 
the life of this brave soldier of Christ. They consist of de- 
crees of the Government inimical to the Church and amongst 
them are two addressed directly to F. Hof bauer ; and the 
rest to the episcopal officials, with their answers. 

We thus have before us, in due form, the account of an 
important religious strife in Prussia at the beginning of the 
19 th century: and the only difference between this conflict 
and the present one, is, that, during the former period, Fa- 
ther Hofbauer fought the battle alone for the rights and 
liberty of the Church, whose ecclesiastical dignities did little 
or nothing to help him: whereas now, Bishops, Clergy and 
Laity hold firmly together and, like a strong wall, repel 
bravely every hostile attack and by their united action, en- 
sure eventual victory. 

As the Life of F. Hofbauer had [already left the Press 
when we received these unexpected documents, we were, at 
first, much puzzled to know what to do with them. But as 
the religious strife in Germany still continues, to the great 
detriment of the common welfare, in spite of the recent 



344 Appendix I. 

modifications of the May Laws, we resolved to publish this 
interesting matter as an Appendix, to complete the Biography 
of this great and holy man, and as an important contribu- 
tion to the History of the first ten years of this century. For 
the information of those readers who may not remember 
certain passages in F. Hofbauer's life, we will repeat a few 
facts : in other respects we will only add one or two remarks 
on the documents themselves. 

Rome, Nov. 1. 1882. , 



I. 

IT is well known that at the time of the third partition 
of Poland, a large portion of the country, with its chief 
town, Warsaw, came into the possession of Prussia who 
ruled over it for about twelve years, that is, till 1807. At 
first, the Prussians showed themselves favourable to the 
Redemptorists. Most of the Priests were German ; St. Ben- 
none was the only Church in which sermons were preached 
in that language; and as the Poles also frequented it, the 
variance between the two nationalities gradually disappeared ; 
which the new Government were wise enough to know was 
very much in their own interest. The people saw with great 
satisfaction that Prussian officials frequented their Church, 
listened to their sermons and if they were Catholics, received 
the Sacraments. 

The self-sacrificing devotion and zeal with which F. Hof- 
bauer received the poor abandoned children who had been 
left orphans by the late war, whom he washed and dressed 
with his own hands and for whom he was not ashamed to 
beg, was spoken of by every one and won all hearts. We 



Appendix I. 345 

have given an account in his life of the manner in which 
he founded two orphanages : one for boys and one for girls. 
He not only provided these poor children with food and 
clothing, but attended himself to their education, both as 
regarded religious and secular knowledge. He also opened 
workshops in which they were taught different trades. To 
teach the girls, he formed a guild among young ladies of 
noble families who eagerly came forward to assist him and 
devoted themselves to the instruction of these poor children: 
while for the boys, he chose out the most capable of his lay- 
brothers and other young men who sought admission into 
his order, which gave him an opportunity to test their capa- 
bilities. 

At first, their efforts were confined to the boys in the 
home: but after a time, when F. Hofbauer perceived the 
extreme ignorance of the young lads in the town of whom 
no one took any heed and for whom there was no school 
whatever, he felt that something more must be done. : He 
determined therefore, to open a public Gymnasium in con- 
nection with his orphanage and equally under his control, 
to which he added a Refectory for the most destitute. The 
need of such an Institution was very great: for since the 
suppression of the Jesuits, all the Schools and Colleges had 
been closed : and in the political distractions of the time, 
all learning had been neglected. There were, in conse- 
quence, very few vocations either for the Priesthood or the 
Religious Orders — a want which F. Hofbauer felt he must 
do his utmost to supply. It is true that according to the 
Rule of St. Alphonsus, Seminaries and Schools were not in- 
cluded among Redemptorist works, so that those Fathers 
might give themselves up more entirely to missions and re- 
treats. But when the Jesuit and other teaching orders were 
suppressed, Pope Pius VI. enjoined a modification of the 
Rule in this respect: and F. Hofbauer, on account of the 
urgent need and necessities of the times, gladly availed 



346 Appendix I. 

himself of this permission. By degrees a large number of 
external students begged permission to attend the classes, 
among whom were several who were desirous of embracing 
the ecclesiastical state. He took care that these should be 
thoroughly instructed in Latin and Theology, seeking to ob- 
tain from them a genuine interest in and understanding of 
what they learnt rather than a great amount of knowledge. 

This College became a great success: the most talented 
theological candidates came expressly to Warsaw to study 
at St. Bennone, and among the rest, the former Bishop of 
Ermeland, Joseph Goritz, who, with many other excellent 
Priests , spoke most gratefully of the admirable instruction 
they had received and the noble examples they had had in 
F. Hofbauer and his monks of a truly apostolic life. Even 
the Government seemed, at first, to favour the Institution. 
The previous Russian Governor General had decreeed a 
considerable sum for the enlargement of the school-build- 
ings : and although this money was not paid owing to the 
change of Government, the Prussians gave yearly a con- 
siderable sum towards the maintenance of the students : and 
F. Hofbauer wrote to the F. General of his Order at this 
time as follows: "The Government looks with a favourable 
eye on those who devote themselves to teaching : and thinks 
so well of our Institution that they even prefer it to any 
other." 

Such hopes, however, were destined to be speedily over- 
thrown : and F. Hofbauer soon found that the subsidy given 
was not by any means from good will to the Redemptorists, 
but rather a clever and well-laid scheme to ruin their work. 
It was true that during the first few years, the Government 
could find no suitable Professors, so that they were obliged 
to delay and conceal their projects. But after a time, they 
found certain apostate and married Priests, who, in their 
opinion, were more fit to train and educate the students 
than the members of a Religious order and then they forth- 



Appendix II. 347 

with made proposals to F. Hofbauer, to which he could not 
possibly accede. They demanded, in virtue of the authority 
belonging to the state, the chief superintendence of the 
schools, the choice of the Professors, and the control of the 
money granted by the state treasury towards the College. 
Now it was that poor F. Hofbauer discovered the secret of 
the generosity of the Government towards the Institution! 
From being a school where religious influences were every- 
where felt, it was, on the ground of the state contributions, 
to be converted into an atheistical Gymnasium where only 
secular instruction would be given. 



II. 

WE will now give the documents which refer to the Col- 
lege and to the admission of theological students. 

"Frederick William .... &c. to Our .... &c. 

Although we are convinced that the Order confided to 
your care has carried on the business of education to which 
it has devoted itself, from the purest zeal for the moral wel- 
fare and good conduct of the students, yet, if the state is to 
enjoy the wished-for fruits of this zeal, the noviciate and 
the Seminaries administered by the latter, must both undergo 
a thorough and radical reform. 

The state desires, that through its Seminaries and Schools, 
its future citizens should be brought up, not only to be mo- 
rally good, but to be made useful for their different callings 
in life. For this purpose, Professors are required who shall 
possess the necessary knowledge and the talent for teaching. 
Hitherto, the preparation which the student has received, 
in no way answers to his future calling as a schoolmaster. 



348 Appendix II. 

The education given in the so-called schools of your institu- 
tion are quite as unsuitable. 

The South Prussian Department of our Directorium Generate 
has, therefore, for both these reasons, felt itself compelled 
to decree: 

I. With regard to the reception of students who wish to 
become members of the order : 

1. That the order may educate young men as future 
teachers : but that 

2. No one shall be received into the noviciate before 
he has completed his 24 th year : though he may then 
be allowed to take the " Voto semplice". 

3. The consent of our chamber is necessary for the 
reception of a novice : and this will only be given 
when the candidate is found fitted for teaching by 
the Examining Committee ; with the exception of 
those received in the usual way into the cloistered 
order. 

For this it will be required : 

a. That he should know perfectly both Polish and 
German. 

b. That he should give proof of a thorough general 
knowledge of Geography, History and Natural 
History. 

c. That in all things he should show a natural ca- 
pacity for further improvement. 

4. During the noviciate, no one may wear the dress 
of the order and still less before he has been re- 
ceived into it. He may only do so after taking the 
solemn vow (votum solemne) or if he be really a 
Professor: and even for that, special permission 
from our Chamber will be required. 

II. During the noviciate, the young men must receive 
instruction in the following branches of knowledge : 



Appendix II. 349 

1 . Written compositions in the Polish and German 
languages. 

2. In the theory of Arithmetic and the art of impart- 
ing it to others. 

3. In free-hand Drawing and likewise in Drawing 
with rule and compass. 

4. In Natural History, Physics and Technology, in 
so far as the knowlege of them may have an in- 
fluence on practical life. 

5. In the art of teaching, theoretically and practically. 
The novice shall on that account take a class to 
whom he shall communicate the necessary teach- 
ing : and this instruction shall be given under the 
superintendence of the Professor who has taught 
him the art and method of imparting knowledge 
to his pupils. 

III. With regard to the education itself which the Order 
is to give in the different Schools under its super- 
intendence, it is directed that: 
1. In general: 

a. Those who undertake the instruction of youth 
must he entirely free from any of the priestly 
concerns of the order and shall confine them- 
selves exclusively to the duties of instruction. 

b. Every one of these teachers must be examined 
and approved by the Examining Committee ap- 
pointed for that branch in which he is to give 
instruction. 

c. Every teacher must teach at least 4 hours a day. 

d. The number of hours for study is arranged for 
six hours a day. 

e. The instruction in the different branches of 
knowledge must be given from those books 
which our Chamber will choose for that purpose. 



350 Appendix II. 

f. These schools shall not be designed for any 
special confession of faith, but will be open to 
all, without regard to the religion to which the 
pupil belongs. Therefore, the instruction in 
matters of faith for the young people belonging 
to the Catholic Church, must be given in hours 
set apart for this purpose; as, of course, only 
those belonging to the Catholic Church can be 
enjoined to attend the public worship in the 
Church of St. Bennone. The non-Catholic pu- 
pils must, during the religious instruction of 
the Catholics, be taught other things and em- 
ployed in industrial work. 

2. With regard to the Boys' Schools: 

a. The Latin classes will be closed in these schools 
on the 1 st of May: because the class of boys 
who are taught in these schools do not require 
Latin and could only learn it in a very imper- 
fect manner and at the cost of more necessary 
branches of knowledge. 

b. The children shall be divided into different 
classes according to the measure of their capa- 
city and knowledge. 

c. They shall also at certain times be instructed 
in industrial work. 

3. With regard to the Girls' Schools: 

a. Girls may only remain in the schools of your 
order till their 14 th year. 

At the expiration of this time they shall be 
placed as servants in noble families, if their 
parents should not be in a position to support 
them. 

b. Their instruction is to be restricted to reading 
(both Polish and German, if possible), Arith- 
metic, writing and needle work. 



Appendix II. 351 

These are the principles of the plan according to which 
the reform of the Institution of St. Bennone will he con- 
ducted. 

In order to carry out this new plan of organisation we 
impose herewith upon you : • 

1 . To prepare a full and exact specification of your order, 
that is : 

a. Of the priests. 

b. Of the monks. 

c. Of the novices. 

d. Of the lay-brothers. 

To which must be added ; the age of each : the period of 
residence in the monastery: and the birth-place of each. 
With regard to the monks there must also be added the date 
when each made his profession (took the vow). And with 
regard to the novices, it must be stated when the permis- 
sion was given by our Chamber to enter the noviciate ; the 
date of the aforesaid decree must also be given. 

This information, therefore, we require you to give us and 
to declare: 

2. a. Which members of your order up to this time, have 

occupied themselves with education? and what bran- 
ches of knowledge they have taught? 

b. Which of your novices have specially qualified them- 
selves for the office of teachers ? 

c. To whom is entrusted the administration of the tem- 
poralities of the order, in the widest sense of the 
term? 

3. We desire, a circumstantial account of the education 
given, especially that of the boys. 

a. Into how many classes they are divided? What is 
taught in the different classes? and at what hours? 
Also, the names and ages of the scholars in each 
class : the time of their stay in the college : and the 



352 Appendix II. 

names and occupations of their parents. If the boys 
be employed in industrial work, this also is to be 
described, and where the instruction in this work is 
given? and to what use it is turned? 
b. An equally circumstantial account of the Girls' 
Schools is required, with their names and ages, &c. 
Their needlework is likewise to be exactly described, 
with the way in which they are taught. Also, whether 
the work is ever sold? and how? and what has been 
received from the sale since the foundation of the 
school? 

4. As we are disposed to leave to you the Cloister build- 
ings of the Carmelites in the Losche suburb or that in 
the Cracova suburb for the schools under your con- 
trol, you must examine these buildings with the Pro- 
vost von Raszmowski and make such arrangements as 
may be convenient for both parties. 

5. Should you, however, have any proposals to make for 
the improvement of the Industrial School, we desire 
you to make such immediately and if they be found 
good, our Chamber will do all that is possible to support 
them. 

To the College of St. Bennone, especially, (if it be re- 
modelled according to the afore-mentioned principles, so as 
to become a Standard or Model School,) we would allow all 
the improvements which the funds render possible, accord- 
ing to what is ascertained of its requirements, and that be- 
yond all the other schools. 

We are .... &c &c. 

Given at Warsaw, Jan. 4. 1801. 

The Royal South Prussian Chambers. 

To the Vicar General Hofbauer, 
at the College of St. Bennone." 



Appendix III. 353 



III. 

THE carrying-out of this so-called reform , would have 
been the complete ruin of the order. There were at that 
time in the monastery of St. Bennone twelve Fathers, in- 
cluding F. Hofbauer. They had all been employed in the 
schools more orless. Therefore, if, as Professors, they were 
not to be allowed to perform any functions in the church, 
Father Hofbauer would be compelled to give up the Col- 
lege altogether. The Fathers would have become nothing 
but Prussian schoolmasters ; and before even being allowed 
to teach, would have been obliged to pass a strict examina- 
tion before the Royal Committee upon subjects certainly 
useful , but not at all adapted to a missionary career. All 
the Professors were to teach for four hours daily and also 
must have leisure time to prepare their lectures. All were 
to know Polish and German perfectly. But the Poles and 
the French knew very little German, while the Germans 
knew scarcely any Polish. It was evident then, that the 
examination was so arranged that few if any of the Fathers 
could pass it and consequently their College would have to 
be closed. As it was forbidden also to teach Latin, the idea 
which Father Hofbauer had at heart to form thoroughly 
qualified priests and gain able members for his order, was 
entirely frustrated. 

According to this new decree also, the College was to be 
open to all, without distinction of creed ; and instruction in 
the Catholic religion was only to be given at special hours. 
No books were to be used save those allowed by the Govern- 
ment, which, to a Catholic priest, would be simply impos- 
sible. The real object of the Government was to start a Se- 
cular School and so to damage the Catholic Faith, as may be 
clearly perceived by the decree of the 4 th of July which we 
shall shortly give to our readers. But the Government, not 

23 



354 Appendix III. 

content with ruining the schools, were determined to destroy 
the order also, if possible. They decreeed, as we have seen, 
that no one should be allowed to enter the noviciate before 
his 24 th year and even then he might not wear the dress of 
the order. 

The postulant must be exempt from military service, 
which was almost an impossibility : and he was to undergo 
an examination before a hostile Protestant Committee (as 
Father Hofbauer writes) to prove that he was a proficient 
in the Polish and German Languages and that he possessed 
a general knowledge of Geography, History and Natural 
History : also that he showed a good disposition for further 
improvement. But even when he had fulfilled all these con- 
ditions, he must again undergo an examination before the 
Protestant Committee and receive from them the permis- 
sion to take the vows. And while the rules of the order of 
the Holy Redeemer ordain that their novices should be spe- 
cially trained in the spiritual life and during that time should 
not give themselves up to much study, the Government de- 
manded that they should devote themselves entirely to it 
and that they should perfect themselves in Polish and Ger- 
man, in Arithmetic and Drawing, in the study of Physics 
and Natural History and in the art of Teaching! Where are 
novices to be found who, at 24 years of age, after having 
attained to such extensive acquirements as to become 
able masters in a Gymnasium, would subject themselves 
like a set of school-boys, to the annoyance of an Examining 
Committee avowedly hostile to them? And even supposing 
them to have passed the first examination, they would still 
have to take care that they were not prevented at the se- 
cond, from taking their vows ! No wonder that it was impos- 
sible for Father Hofbauer to accept these conditions. 

Besides all this, another examination before a Secular 
Committee awaited the would-be priest before he could re- 
ceive ordination: while foreigners could not be ordained 



Appendix IV. 355 

priests at all, the Government having forbidden the Bishop 
to ordain any such. The Redemptorists, in fact, were to be 
reduced to the position of Secular Schoolmasters and to be 
made use of to germanise the Poles. Hence all were to un- 
dergo an examination to see if they were perfect in those 
languages and even the poor orphan girls were not to be 
exempt! Very remarkable is the demand that the Redemp- 
torists were to notify to the Government to whom the ad- 
ministration of the temporalities of the order were confided. 
The Government hoped in this way to take away from them 
the last remnant of independence and to become themselves 
(instead of the Father Superior) , the Administrators of the 
monastery. They wished to have the oversight of the reve- 
nues and expenses and might have decreeed in the end 
what the Fathers might eat and drink, how much yearly 
was to be given for their clothes, &c. ! It is obvious that no 
Religious Order could brook such interference with their 
Rules. 



IV. 

THE Government on the same day (Jan. 4) had demanded 
of the Episcopal Officials that they should give information 
regarding the institutions of St. Bennone and as their offi- 
cials delayed doing so, they received (on the 28 th of April 
1801) a severe order to send in the required information 
within one month. 

The answer is as follows: 

"We have the honour to present to your Majesty accord- 
ing to your Royal Command the accompanying report with 
regard to the Institution of the Bennonites here and we are, 



356 Appendix IV. 

till death, with the deepest reverence, your gracious Majes- 
ty's most obedient and humble servants, 

The Roman Catholic Consistory." 
Warsaw, 
June 8. 1801. 

The Government was not at all satisfied, however, with 
this answer, as appears from the following decree : 

"Frederick William. By Gods Grace King of Prussia, &c. &c. 

Most reverend and trusty servants! we send you our gra- 
cious salutation and greeting. You were commanded ac- 
cording to the rescript of the 28 th of April, to give us cir- 
cumstantial information as to which members of the Ordo 
Clericorum ad St. Redemptorem (Bennonem) the offices of 
preaching and of the administration of the Sacraments in 
their church were confided : and so to act that the numerous 
abuses which had crept in to the Church of St. Bennone 
might be efficiently reformed. We had also desired you to 
lay before us the steps you had taken in consequence , ac- 
cording to the discretionary authority imparted to you by 
our decree. 

But your report, received by us on the 8 th of this month, 
contains nothing of all this. You content yourself simply 
with delivering a protest against our decree that no novice 
should wear the dress of the order before taking his simple 
vows : although it would have been easy for you to have ex- 
plained the grounds of this refusal, according to the insight 
you possess into the canonical rules of the Bennonites. 
You have, in fact, put us off with this simple notification of 
what Father Hof bauer has protested against : but your con- 
cern in this affair is in no way ended. F. Hofbauer has pre- 
sented us with a similar protest, which we have treated as 
it deserves, as you will perceive by the annexed paper. 

We repeat, therefore, our command to you immediately 



Appendix V. 357 

or, at latest, within a fortnight, to inform us what directions 
you have sent to the order in pursuance of our decree of 
the 28 th of April. And we exact from you that you will 
faithfully and wisely use the authority committed to you 
over all the monasteries in your diocese, more especially 
when the cloistered monks are likewise Parish priests, with 
the cure of souls; and consequently are subject, according 
to canonical law, to your special over-sight. 

We are, with grace and favour, 

devotedly yours, &c. 

Given at Warsaw on the 3 rd of July 1801. 

From the Royal Prussian War and Estate Chamber. 

To the Episcopal Commissary (Ofnzialat)." 



V. 

UNFORTUNATELY, we have not got the text of Father 
Hofbauer's protest: but its purport is apparent from a letter 
of this venerable servant of God on the 1 st of October 1801. 
He is writing to Tannoja. 

"I pray you and our brethren in Italy, to commend 

our order here to God's mercy, for we are in great tribula- 
tion and not only we, but all monks. Free-thinkers reign 
supreme in the Government under which we live and they 
have begun their work by seeking in every possible way to 
annoy the Catholic Clergy. Catholic Worship has not it is 
true, been as yet forbidden : but the machinery for its des- 
truction has been so set in motion, that it must, by degrees, 
be extinguished. First: the Government have put forth a 
decree that no one should venture to appeal to the Pope: 



358 Appendix V. 

even Bishops are only permitted to do so through the Go- 
vernment. 

Next : All monks of whatever order have been forbidden 
to hold any communication with foreign Superiors and are 
to be entirely subject to the Bishops. No Religious Order 
may receive novices without direct permission from the Go- 
vernment ; and if the candidate be not noble, he must ob- 
tain his exemption from the conscription from the Comman- 
dant of the Province in which he was born. This does not 
seem absolutely to forbid the reception of a novice, but in 
reality it does so, the exemptions from military service being 
so rarely granted. It has worked in such a manner that 
none of the monasteries of this town, except the missiona- 
ries of St. Vincent of Paul, can get any novices at all : and 
we have only two. The Lazarists and ourselves have, up to 
this time, been allowed to take novices: but a new decree 
has just appeared which renders it so difficult that Supe- 
riors hesitate to take them. The Government only allows 
them now to be received on the condition that the postulant 
shall have completed his 24 th year: that he shall wear his 
lay dress during the whole year of his noviciate : and pass 
an examination before certain Protestant examiners named 
by the Government. When he has completed his noviciate, 
he must pass a second examination before the same Protes- 
tant examiners: and this examination is nothing but an 
endeavour to turn novices from their vocations. Even after 
all this has been done, the novices must petition the Go- 
vernment for leave to take their vows as monks : and then, 
(that is, when they have completed their 25 th year), they 
may wear the dress of the order. 

It is evident that this decree makes it impossible to com- 
ply with the evangelical counsels. 

When they delivered it to us, we answered in a letter 
that ™we were not permitted, except by superior authority, to do any- 
thing which would contradict the universal custom of the Latin as 



Appendix V. 359 

well as the Greek Church, which this decree did? I believe the 
Superiors of other orders have answered in a like sense. 
The Church is indeed sorely persecuted in this country. 
How happy are you, beloved Fathers, to have a King who, 
being a Catholic, protects its Clergy! To whom can we flee 
for refuge? We groan under a heavy hand. The Govern- 
ment has formed a so-called Religious or Ecclesiastical Coun- 
cil: yet not one of its member is a Catholic. The President 
of this Council is neither a Lutheran, nor a Calvinist, nor a 
Zwinglian: he is not even a Christian; but a thorough 
Atheist and the bitterest foe of all religious orders. Yet 
this man gives his orders to the Bishops and Clergy and de- 
cides all ecclesiastical questions ! ! 

We may judge of the shameful way in which the clergy 
are treated by the Government from the fact that this Pre- 
sident fulfils a three-fold office : i. e. to watch over 

1. The Catholic Clergy, 

2. the Jews, 

3. and the public Prostitutes, 

and that these three are bracketed together! How disgrace- 
fully is the Royal Priesthood thus considered! This city is 
now filled with Free-thinkers. It is, therefore, a constant 
miracle, that, by the Grace of God, the poor people for the 
most part, follow the example of their forefathers, persevere 
in good works , and are always hungering more and more 
for the divine Word. We strive, at least, to feed them by 

our sermons I write this to you that when you hear 

of our miserable condition, you may the more earnestly pray 
to God for us" 



360 Appendix VI. 



VI. 

WE will now give the answer from the Government to 
F. Hofbauer's protest. 

"Frederick William, &c. To Our, &c. 
Greeting, &c. 

However much we may be disposed, according to the 
principles of our constitution, to leave religious institutions 
undisturbed (as far as their rules concern matters of con- 
science), yet such rules must never be contrary to the prin- 
ciples which the state considers necessary and binding. 

Now, the interest of the state requires that all educational estab- 
lishments or colleges in which the future citizens of that state are to 
be brought up, should be organised independently of any particular 
confession of faith: for the peace and harmony of the diffe- 
rent creeds and their followers (which form the basis of po- 
litical unity) can never be happily effected except during 
the early years of education. Every subject also has a right 
to the same education, no matter to what creed he may be- 
long, if only he be prepared to fulfil his duty as a citizen of 
that state. 

All the educational and scholastic establishments are, therefore, to 
be looked upon, not as ecclesiastical institutions depending on the "foro 
ecclesiastico" , but as being under the immediate superintendence of 
the state, to whom alone the authority belongs to arrange the condi- 
tions upon which every one (whether individually or corporately) 
toill receive authority to teach and also to define the manner and 
matter of the instruction given. This -authority of the state is 
inherent in its municipal power as well as from its rights 
as supreme Guardian of its subjects. 

Consequently, you must submit yourself and your order 
to the laws which we consider necessary and proper : and 
you must so reorganise and conduct the educational estab- 



Appendix VI. 361 

lishments committed to your care as to ensure that their 
object, according to our ideas, may be attained : and that 
you may thus form morally good and useful subjects for the 
state. 

Were we to prescribe the rules whereby a monk who de- 
votes himself to a contemplative life should be guided, re- 
monstrances might very justly be made at our interference 
with the constitutions of the order (provided the state tole- 
rated any such order). 

But where a Religious Order devotes itself to instruction 
and so exercises a direct influence on the welfare of a state, 
then must the order, as such, submit itself to the laws which 
the state has made for public education. The question as to 
how far they may reconcile obedience to these laws with 
the rules of their order, must be left to their own conscience 
and wisdom. 

We have determined to act according to these principles towards 
all the orders ivho occupy themselves with public education : and you 
and your order, if you wish to continue as teachers of youth, 
must submit absolutely to the same. Our unalterable deci- 
sion, therefore, is: 

1 . That no novice may take the dress of the order before 
taking the Vota Simplicia* 

The objections which you make against this decree 
are partly insignificant and partly untrue. You know 
from Church History that, in the beginning, it was for- 
bidden to grant the dress of the order to novices : and 
also the reasons for annulling this wise decree, which 
vanEspen, injure canonico part. I. tit. XXV. cap. 3.7. very 
clearly points out. 

Besides, the Concilium Tridentinum, in the passage re- 



* "In so far as it is true that, properly speaking, no Vota Solemnia 
(Solemn Vows) are taken in your order, this Decree holds good in re- 
spect of Simple Vows." 



362 Appendix VI. 

ferred to by you, speaks of the Seminariis Clericorum: i. e. 
of educational institutes for those who were intended 
to be priests : not, therefore, of colleges where teachers 
of boys belonging to the burgher class were to be edu- 
cated. And, according to your own admission, the chief 
object of your seminaries or novice-schools, is to edu- 
cate good school-masters. 

2. Just as unalterable is our decree respecting the instruc- 
tion to be given to the novices, according to the rescript 
of Jan. 9. At the close of the year's noviciate if, at the 
examination commanded by us, it is found that the 
novice is qualifying himself more for the so-called spi- 
ritual life than for the profession of a school-master, he 
must be entirely excluded from the office of teaching 
and restrict himself solely to his priestly functions, 
under the guidance of the order, and according to the 
instruction given in the usual way within his monas- 
tery. 

3. Under no condition can it be allowed that those mem- 
bers who occupy themselves in teaching and at the 
examination have shewn a capacity for that art, should, 
at the same time, devote themselves to any of the func- 
tions of the clerical office. For as it is our positive will 
that every teacher or Professor should give lessons for 
at least four hours a day, so, if he has to prepare his 
lectures and if he desires to improve in his own studies 
and especially in learning the art of teaching (as is of 
course, his duty) he will have neither time nor inclina- 
tion to devote himself to other occupations. But if any 
member of your order who has hitherto devoted him- 
self to the office of teacher, should prefer the functions 
of the clerical office, it will be easy for him (as the ex- 
perience of the secular clergy proves) to acquire the 
necessary knowledge. Only, he must then resign his 
Professorship and cease to teach in the schools. 



-Appendix VI. 363 

You must, therefore, immediately, or at latest, within 
a fortnight, lay before as a statement of the names and 
ages of those members of our order who have hitherto 
been occupied in teaching and who are willing to de- 
vote themselves to the work of education according to 
the conditions laid down by us in our Rescript of Jan. 4. 

We will then have such persons examined, with re- 
gard to their capabilities as teachers, by the School- 
examining Committee, by the Estate Councillor N and 

by the Director Hube : who will pass them as School- 
masters if they find them suited to that office, 
4. As regards the education of the pupils, we make an 
unalterable rule that: 

a. Six hours daily of public instruction is to be given 
according to a plan drawn up by ourselves, 

b. All instruction in Latin shall cease : and in its place, 
the German boys are to be taught Polish, and the 
Polish German. Those boys who may require Latin 
for their future professions, can learn it in the higher 
school which we shall shortly establish in this city. 

We have also commanded the Episcopal Commissary to 
exercise a strict control over those members of your order 
who have devoted themselves especially to the cure of souls ; 
which the existing Lex Diocesana requires of him and which 
the numerous complaints of disorders said to have arisen in 
your church render especially necessary. 

We have full confidence that in your wisdom and devo- 
tion to the present Government, you will submit yourselves 
to these Decrees, which will only tend to the well-being of 
your institution. We expect this of you the more confidently 
as you receive such substantial aid from our school-funds : which 
assistance, however, will instantly cease if you refuse to sub- 
mit to these principles of organisation, which we have de- 
creeed as unalterable in the Rescript of the 4 th of January. 



364 Appendix VII, 

We await your final decision within fourteen days and 
are, &c &c. 

Warsaw, Royal Chamber, 4 th of July 1801. 
To the Vicar General Hofbauer." 

One might have expected that those candidates who had 
passed the aforesaid examination, would, at least, have been 
allowed to take their vows. But a Rescript of the 12 th of 
May 1806 refused permission to two candidates, Stanislaus 
Hausner and Joseph Goebel to become monks (although 
they had- passed the Examining Committee), on the simple 
ground that the number of the Fathers already in the mo- 
nastery was too great! : 



VII. 

WE will now give a translation of the answer of the Ca- 
tholic Consistory to the demands of the Government. 

"To the Sovereign Command of your Royal Majesty 

that we should inform you within 1 4 days to which mem- 
bers of the order ad St. Redemptorem (Bennonites) the office 
of preaching and the Administratio Sacrorum is confided , Ave 
humbly beg to observe that the said order, strictly speaking, 
exercises no cure of souls , as they have no special Parish, 
and restrict their clerical functions to the saying of mass, 
hearing confessions and preaching. The members of the 
order are not allowed to exercise these functions till they 
have been found capable and approved of by our Officio prae- 
vio: they are then entrusted with the duty of preaching if 
in German, by the Vicar of the order, Father Hofbauer : if 
in Polish" by B * 

» * This name is illegible. The Polish Preacher was Father Blumenau. 



Appendix VII. 365 

As to the purport of your Sovereign Rescript of the 4 th of 
July, concerning certain disorders which have arisen in the 
Church of St. Bennone, we have no knowledge of them, 
nor have any special dates or occasions up to this time, been 
mentioned to us. A short time ago, certainly, the Police 
Director of this town complained to us that the services in 
the said church were protracted to too late an hour and that 
this might give rise to disturbances: upon which we imme- 
diately took measures that the service from the 1 st of May 
to the 1 st of October should be concluded at 8 o'clock in 
the evening: and during the other months of the year at 6 
o'clock. (The police had exacted this) and we will specially 
take care that no further cause of complaint shall be found 
regarding the aforesaid order. 

With the deepest reverence, &c. 

The Roman Catholic Consistory." 

Warsaw, 5 th of August 1801. 

With regard to this regulation of the hours of service, a 
further Government Paper was issued on the 4 th of May 1802. 

"We are not in the least disposed to prevent our subjects 
in any way from practising their religious duties : but we 
cannot pass over in silence the abuses which have arisen 
(according to the statements of the police) in this town. We 
know that the Catholic Church has endeavoured to prevent 
the transgression of the laws by the citizens who have thus 
acted under the pretence of worshipping God. But it lies 
with you to watch over the observance of these decrees and 
to harmonise them with the fundamental principles of the 
state. 

In order, however, not to give the Bennonites the faintest 
cause of complaint at illegal restrictions with regard to their 
devotions, we will, for the present, permit them to hold their 
services at the times and as often as they were allowed by 
the former Government. 



366 Appendix VIII. 

There must surely have been some sort of constitution 
drawn up, at the time of their coming to Warsaw, denning 
their duties and privileges and the conditions under which 
they were to enjoy the protection of the state. 

This constitution you are required to lay before us and at 
the same time to give us your opinion as to whether it may 
serve now as a model for our treatment of the Bennonites? 
Or in what respect it may be modified? 

But if there be not such a legal statement existing, we 
must leave it to you so to arrange the public worship of the 
Church of St. Bennone (in accordance with ecclesiastical 
rules and the spirit of the Catholic Church) as the interests 
of the state require : until such time as more precise Decrees 
be drawn up and communicated to you by the state. 

In the latter case, before you inaugurate any enactments 
for the Bennonites, we expect the plans for such to be sent 
to us for inspection and close criticism. 

We remain, graciously and devotedly yours, &c. &c. 

Royal South Prussian Chamber. 
Given at Warsaw 
4 th of May 1802. 

To the Episcopal Consistory." 



VIII. 

NOW, as to these alledged. disorders or abuses connected 
with the Church of St. Bennone, nothing had ever been 
heard of them by the spiritual authorities : but instead of 
taking the priests under their protection, the police had, in 
fact, inaugurated their persecution. These men were not 
ashamed to declare that dissolute women wandered about 



Appendix IX. 367 

at a late hour of the night under the pretence of going to 
Church. Yes, dissolute people certainly went about the 
town late at night : but they were under the protection of 
the discreet police. Very obscene pieces were played at the 
theatre, in which holy functions and persons were ridiculed. 
In the free-masons' lodges and public houses every kind of 
noise and outrage was permitted: but if any one went to 
Church in the evening it was looked upon as a crime ! To 
serve God and their neighbour by prayer, self-denial and 
the observance of Gospel precepts, was instantly denounced 
as a danger to the country and a crime against the state. 
Hence the persecution of the monasteries, which, in the 
present state of modern society, suffer almost everywhere 
from the most slanderous and false accusations. If, however, 
a bad woman demands permission to practice her horrible 
trade undisturbed, it is immediately granted to her: and 
this was the case at that time in Warsaw. 



IX. 

THE Government did not actually forbid mission work: 
but it was made very difficult and placed under the hostile 
inspection of the police. When Count Adam Lasocki wished 
missions to be held in the different villages on his estate, he 
was obliged to apply to the Government to avoid annoyances 
in that quarter, although he had already received permis- 
sion from the Bishop of the Diocese. 

The Government applied to the King on the 5 th of Oct. 
as follows: 

"As at such missions, three or four thousand people are 
accustomed to assemble, we wish to ask Your Majesty if he 



368 Appendix IX. 

consents to such meetings? and if anything special, under 
such circumstances, shall be observed by the police?" 

The King's answer was as follows: 

"By God's Grace, Frederick William, King of Prussia. 
Our gracious salutation and greeting. 
Most venerable and faithful servants ! 

We have nothing to say against the petition of the Cas- 
tellan von Lasocki at Illow, presented through certain mem- 
bers of the Convent of St. Bennone here, that we will allow 
missions to be held in his Parishes of Illow and Brochow, 
if you consider that such a step be advisable in these chur- 
ches. But at the same time we positively decree : 

1 . That these missions may only be held with the express 
consent of the Parish Priests of these places. 

2. That they are to be carried on solely under the super- 
intendence of the said Parish Priests and that the mis- 
sionaries are to be considered only as their helpers and 
representatives for the time being. 

3. That they be only temporary: and that they may not 
give occasion to extraordinary assemblages of people: 
nor of drinking-places usually connected with such 
gatherings. 

The said Count Lasocki and the Bennonites must bind 
themselves to the exact fulfilment of these conditions. 

We also wish you to lay before us the enclosed protocol 
with the consent in writing of the Parish Priests of Bro- 
chow and Illow, according to our command: after which 
the minor details of the matter will be arranged. 

We are yours, &c. &c. 

Given at Warsaw, 17. Oct. 1801." 

In a second paper on the same subject, after the usual 
commencement, it goes on to say: 



Appendix X. 369 

"As the priests of the Parishes of Illow and Brochow have 
given their consent to the holding of missions in their dis- 
tricts, according to the report sent in hy you on the 3 rd of 
November, and as the Bennonites have submitted to the 
express conditions laid down by our Chamber, we authorise 
you (the Bennonites to communicate this our gracious per- 
mission to the above-named Parishes. We expect, however, 
that you will use every endeavour, by an efficient oversight 
of the people attending these missions, to prevent any pos 
sible disorders arising in consequence. And we have also 
instructed the respective Land Governors "of this district, 
von Keutszysnaki and von Zychlinski, to exercise the ne- 
cessary police supervision in those parishes." 



X. 

A crying misuse of secular power in a purely religious 
affair may be shown in the following fact : Father Hof bauer 
had sent for a statue of the Madonna from Vienna and had 
had it placed in his church. This was considered a crime! 

1. In a letter from the Government of the 5 th of April 
1802 to the Episcopal Commissary, after the usual greeting, 
it goes on to say: 

"It has been represented to us that the Bennonites have 
received from Vienna a miracle-working picture or statue 
of the Madonna and that they have set it up in their church 
in presence of a large number of people. As, according to 
Canonical Law, no object for the adoration of the faithful can 
be put up without the express sanction of the Bishop of the 
Diocese, and that this sanction can only be given with Our 
permission, we command you to report to us instantly if this 

24 



370 Appendix X. 

information be correct? And in what manner and whether 
with your knowledge this picture or statue of the Madonna 
has been set up in the Church of St. Bennone? And if so, 
to account to us as to the reason of your having sanctioned 
this without our permission? We await your reply within 
three days at the latest*', &c. &c. 

2. The Roman Catholic Consistory hastened to reply on 
the 7 th of April as follows: 

"According to your most gracious Majesty's Commands of 
the 5 th of April respecting the miracle-working picture or 
statue of the Madonna procured from Vienna by the Ben- 
nonites , we sent immediately for the Father Superior of 
the monastery, and he acknowledged that he had written 
for and obtained a statue of the Madonna ; but as it was only 
to be set up as an ornament in their church and no one had 
ever thought of presenting it to the people as working mi- 
racles, he had considered he might do so without asking 
permission of the Consistory. But as, in the mean while, 
they have not been able to set up this statue in their church 
and that it is laid aside on a terrace in the Garden near 
(where, however, it attracted a number of curious as well as 
devout people) we immediately desired the aforesaid terrace 
to be closed to the public, till we receive your Sovereign 
commands." 

3. On the 12 th of April the same Consistory writes to the 
chamber : 

"We have in our humble report of the 7 th instant given 
the information to your Majesty respecting the statue of the 
Madonna and have locked up the same till we receive your 
further commands. As, however, we have since been told 
that this statue was set up in the church during the night 
between the 8 th and 9 th of April and then solemnly blessed, 
we hasten to inform your Majesty of this and at the same 



Appendix X. 371 

time to declare that our Consistory had not the slightest 
knowledge of this proceeding. 

With the deepest respect, &c. &c. 

4. Upon which, the Consistory received this reply, dic- 
tated hy "blind hate and anger. 

"By God's Grace, Frederick William, King of Prussia. 

Worthy, faithful and trusty servants! In pursuance of 
your report of the 1 2 th of April communicated to us , that 
the Bennonites have set up the statue of the Virgin Mary 
in their Church without your sanction, you must summon 
before you at once the said Hofbauer and draw up a verbal 
process against him on the following points : 

1 . From whence and for what cause he obtained the said 
statue ? And that we may judge of the accuracy of his 
evidence you must lay before him the correspondence 
relating to the affair which has been communicated 
to us. 

2. Whether it was not expressly forbidden to him to place 
this statue in the church for the adoration of the people 
without your sanction? 

3. What led him to act contrary to this command? as it 
must be known to him from the principles of the Ca- 
tholic Church that no picture may be set up for the 
adoration of the people without the sanction of the 
Bishop of the Diocese. 

4. Who blessed or dedicated this statue? 

5. Why it was set up in the night? 

Whether this was the work of the Bennonite Priests? 
What ceremony took place on the occasion? 
Whether the people were spectators of the ceremony ? 

6 . If such were the case, how did the people receive no- 
tice of the approaching function ? 

7 . If the Bennonites made an offering in honour of this 
statue? and under what title? 



372 Appendix X. 

You must earnestly impress upon the said Hofbauer not 
to dissemble the truth ; but to answer these questions con- 
scientiously and dutifully. 

In order to meet the probable pretext of this Hofbauer 
that the statue was not set up for adoration, you must either 
yourselves or through a spiritual commissary authorised by 
you, find out, on the spot, whether the people (as is already 
well-known to us) did not direct their devotions to this sta- 
tue? and also, through their offerings, did not benefit the 
Bennonites? At this inspection, you must also ascertain 
whether this statue, before its introduction into the church, 
were not invested with the Girdle of the order? Such an 
ornamentation of the picture being expressly forbidden by 
the Constitution of Urban 8 th incep: Sacrosancta Tridentina: 
and the Bishop shall immediately send away from the church 
any picture so adorned. 

The said protocol together with your report we shall 
expect from you within four days at latest: and this report 
must be drawn up in writing with all your well known tho- 
roughness : so that we may be able to take measures to save 
your credit (compromised as it has been by the disobedience 
of the Bennonites) and to effectually prevent any similar 
wrong-doings in the future. 

You must add to the report, the copy of the decree in 
which you forbade the setting-up of the statue by the Ben- 
nonites. 

We are, with favour, &c. &c. 

Given at Warsaw, 16 th of April 1802. 
To the Episcopal Commissaries." 

5. The Consistory replied on the 24 th of April. 

"According to the Sovereign command of your Royal Ma- 
jesty, we demanded of Father Hofbauer in the enclosed co- 
pied citation, to justify himself on the points contained in 



Appendix X. 373 

your gracious letter. He appeared on the 22 nd inst. and pre- 
sented a written justification, which we most humbly lay 
before your Majesty, together with four papers from Vienna 
as a voucher for his justification on the l sfc point. At the 
same time we respectfully submit to you, that even if we 
can find F. Hofbauer excused in other respects, we cannot 
altogether justify him for having set up the statue Dolor osae 
Main's, without express permission from the Consistory ; be- 
cause, according to the Concilio Tridenlino, such statues or 
pictures are included to which the people show an inordi- 
nate veneration: and one cannot help fearing that super- 
stition or other abuses may arise from it , if even the statue 
should have nothing extraordinary in itself. 

As to the question of the Girdle of the order, the Regens 
Consistorii will convince himself by ocular investigation how 
the matter really stands : and then send in a circumstantial 
statement of the facts. We shall keep a watchful eye over 
the Bennonite priests and guard strictly against the people 
being led away to superstition by pictorial representations ; 
so that they may be kept within the bounds of becoming 
reverence for holy images according to the principles of the 
Catholic Faith. 

Your Royal Highness' most humble servants, &c. 

The Roman Catholic Consistory." 

This affair, which we must say does little honour to the 
"most humble Consistory", closes with the following letter 
from the Royal Chamber on the 4 th of May 1802. 

After the usual greeting it goes on to say : 

"Your judgment in your report of the 24 th of April is 
quite correct : that the Bennonites, in spite of all their ex- 
cuses, have acted contrary to Canonical Law, in as much 
as they have set up the statue of the Mater Dolorosa in their 
church for the adoration of the people without the sanction 



374 Appendix XI. 

of the Bishop of the Diocese. You must impress upon them 
and especially upon the said Hof bauer the illegality of their 
conduct in the most emphatic manner; and also the threat 
of ecclesiastical punishment as well as of our Sovereign dis- 
pleasure, if they disobey any of your commands, in future, 
in Church matters. 

As the statue is now set up, it must be allowed to re- 
main ; but we expect that you will take special care that the 
superstition of the people be not fed by its adoration: so 
that the object of the Bennonites be thus frustrated. 

We must also remind you of the frequent complaints 
made by the Police that the Bennonites hold their public ser- 
vices almost daily till late at night; by which the lower or- 
ders and especially the farm labourers are kept from their 
work and from the duties of their station. 

We remain, &c. &c." 



XI. 

IT is evident that Father Hof bauer, whose austere Ca- 
tholic bearing would not bow before the idols of the day, 
had become a thorn to the Government, who consequently 
trumped up these absurd accusations against him. They 
would no longer correspond with him directly and certainly 
would have refused their consent to his appointment, if he 
had only lately been created Vicar General. On the 23 rd of 
Febr. 1805 they demanded of the Administrators of the va- 
cant See the preface of the Brief in virtue of which Father 
Hof bauer had been confirmed in his office of Vicar General, 
hoping to find some flaw in the appointment. But in this 



Appendix XI. 375 

they were disappointed. The answer, on the 8 th of March 
1805, was as follows: 

"We fail not to send, at your Royal Highness' Command, 
the confirmation of F. Hofbauer's appointment from the 
General of his Order in Rome in 1 792, as i Vicar ms generalis 
perpetuus in copies authentic^ '. 

We remain, &c. &c." 

Father Hofbauer was at that time in Germany. As he 
saw the impossibility of obtaining fresh novices for his order 
in Warsaw, he went in the autnmn of 1802 to Vienna and 
from thence to the Bishopric of Constance , where Prince 
John Nepomuk Schwarzenberg, had granted him a home in 
an old ruined Chateau called Tabor. There he summoned 
F. Passer at and some other students as we have seen in his 
life. In 1803 he went to Rome and only returned to War- 
saw at the end of January 1804. But in August he was ob- 
liged again to go to Tabor; then to Tryberg in the Black 
Forest ; and then to Babenhausen, where he remained till 
the 18 th of . August 1806, when he returned to Warsaw 
through Vienna, arriving at the end of the year. He had 
undergone severe struggles during all this time for the' Ca- 
tholic faith and the freedom of the Church : but in Germany 
his labours had met with wonderful success. It was a war 
of so-called civilization and progress against religion, under 
the rationalistic innovator, Wessenberg, who although not 
even a priest, ruled the great Diocese of Constance. In Ba- 
benhausen he met with a friendly reception from Prince 
Fugger; but when this little principality fell to Bavaria, an 
end was put to the labours of the missioners and all work 
in the confessionals, in the pulpit and even in visiting the 
sick was denied to them. They were allowed to say mass : 
but the Parish Priest (under superior commands) forbade 
them even to give Holy Communion to the people. 



376 Appendix XT. 

What we have seen these last few years in Prussia is, 
therefore, only a repetition of the " Kulturkampf or the war 
against the Catholic Faith inaugurated at the "beginning of 
this century. We have spoken at length of the labours, 
the struggles and the sufferings of this venerable servant 
of God in Germany in his Biography, to which we refer 
our readers. 



ERRATA. 

Page 8, line 7 f. b. for "Erbipoli" read "Wurzburg". 
,, 11, line 10 f. b. for "marriage" read "matrimony". 



Printed by Breitkopf and Hartel, Leipzig. 



Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: March 2006 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 
1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Township. PA 16066 
(724)779-211' 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




017 425 115 



